Bill W

Castaway Hotel
Next Generation

Chapters 15-23

Halloween was now behind us and everyone had a blast. Jesse and Elliot became even closer after Jesse had offered to let Elliot participate in the Haunted House and all of their hard work paid off. The Haunted House was a huge success and the boys were overwhelmed by the enthusiastic response and positive comments they heard from those going through it. I have a feeling they will want to do this again, next year.

On Monday, Brandon took Elliot to school, so he could enroll him. Brandon even showed his son around the school before he left, so Elliot wouldn't feel so lost. Everything was going fine, until they returned to the office, since it was now time for Brandon to leave. Suddenly, Elliot became very emotional and grabbed on to Brandon's arm with a death grip.

"Do you have to go? Please don't leave me," he begged, which came as a surprise to Brandon.

"I'm not leaving you here for good. It won't be like boarding school," Brandon explained. "You'll see me at home tonight."

"But I don't want to be here alone," Elliot countered.

"It won't be bad. You'll make friends in no time," Brandon offered, as sympathetically as he could. "And Jesse goes to school here too. He's just not in the same grade you are, but I'm sure you'll see him around. You'll probably even run into Jesse's friends, whom you've already met. Besides, as I said before, you'll make other friends quickly. If you have any problems, just go see your Uncle Trey. If you've forgotten, he teaches English here and you can go to him if you have any problems.

Elliot didn't look completely satisfied with this explanation, but after a little more coaxing, he finally gave in. Once Elliot was in his first class, Brandon stayed behind a little longer, so he could make certain the principal and secretary understood what Elliot had been through. He also told them to call me at home if Elliot had any further trouble and they readily agreed.

Brandon returned home, since he had more than an hour before he had to be at his office. When he arrived, I questioned him about how things had gone and he shared his observations with me.

"Elliot didn't want me to leave him there," Brandon began. "I think it might have just been a touch of separation anxiety, especially considering everything he's been through. I just hope he's able to adjust. I told the secretary to call you, if he should have any further problems."

I felt that was a good move on Brandon's part.

"He might have thought that if you were to leave, something bad would happen to you too, like happened with his father," I suggested.

"That might be it," Brandon agreed. "I'm not really sure what was going on in his mind, but I do think Elliot was a little surprised that the school building was so old. I have a feeling the private school he went to must have been more modern, so the difference was a bit unsettling to him. He was continually checking everything out, as we made our way around the building, but didn't say much about it. However, I got the feeling it wasn't what he was expecting. I can't wait to hear how his first day went, but I'm also a little worried about how he's going to handle it, after what happened in the office."

To tell you the truth, I was a little concerned about that myself.

That afternoon, the boys came rushing into the house after school. They were laughing and joking around, but each stopped to say hi to me, before they raced off to the kitchen, so they could grab a snack. I wasn't expecting Elliot to be in such a good mood, especially after what Brandon had told me, but obviously he had made it through his first day and was happy to be back home with us. Well, at least he was happy to be here with Jesse.

Prior to his enrolling in school, we had moved Elliot to a bedroom upstairs, so the boys now flew up the staircase, so they could change their clothes. When they came down a few minutes later, they hurried outside before I got a chance to talk to them. It wasn't a big deal, since I wasn't planning to ask Elliot any questions about his first day. I felt it would be best to leave that to his fathers. Besides, I didn't want to make a big deal over it and felt it would be better if the boys went outside to enjoy the fresh air while it was still light out. I think the exercise will be good for Elliot, after being cooped up in the house for the past few weeks.

Once Danny and Brandon returned home, we all ate dinner together. During the meal, they decided to ask Elliot how his first day went.

"So did everything go all right?" Brandon asked.

"Yeah, it went fine," was Elliot's cryptic reply. "Sorry I acted so weird when you got ready to leave."

"I don't think you acted weird at all," Brandon explained. "Starting at a new school is tough for anyone to do, but particularly so after everything else you've gone through."

Elliot didn't respond to this comment, other than to look down at his plate.

"Did you meet any of the other students?" Brandon prodded.

"Yeah," Elliot confirmed. "This boy came up to me in my math class and introduced himself. His name is Hayden and I even went to lunch with him."

"That sounds promising," Brandon offered. "Did you two hit it off then?"

"I think so," Elliot confessed. "He seems like a nice guy, so I wouldn't mind getting to know him better. I mean, if that's what he wants to do."

"Super!" Brandon agreed, relieved.

"How did you like your teachers?" Danny asked next.

"They seem okay," Elliot responded.

"What did you think of the work?" Danny followed.

"Piece of cake!" Elliot answered, with a smile.

"You don't think it's too hard or that you've fallen behind because you missed so much school?" Danny pressed.

"Nope!" Elliot shot back. "They aren't even up to where my old school was, before I left to go on the trip with my dad."

Since he was indicating the work was much easier here, than at his old school, I think we were all beginning to wonder if this might turn out to be a problem.

"I see," Danny observed, "and what did you think of the school?"

I suspected Danny might ask him this, especially after Brandon told him how Elliot had reacted when he took him to enroll.

"It's pretty old," Elliot answered. "Who founded it? William Penn," Elliot quipped.

"It's not that old and it's even been renovated a couple of times and modernized," Danny explained. "I hope it compared favorably with what you're used to."

"I didn't know what to expect, since I've never gone to a public school before," Elliot confessed. "But the kids were pretty nice, even if some of them did seemed a little dumb."

"I'm sure there are some student who probably aren't up to the standards you were used to at the private schools you've attended," Brandon countered, "but the district does quite well, compared to others. Former students have excelled in state, regional and national competitions and the school always rates well when it comes to standardized test scores and the number of students accepted to some of the better colleges."

"That's right! Your Uncle Trey even made it to the national finals in the Scholastic Writing Competition with a play he wrote," Danny informed Elliot, which caused Trey to blush.

"And your Uncle Andrew did extremely well in some of the art contests and Uncle Sammy did quite well in some history competitions. Your Uncle Dion won honors and a scholarship with his singing talent and Uncle Kevin won a scholarship to become a pharmacist."

Now, Dion and Kevin were blushing too.

"Wow! That's great! I didn't know any of that!" Elliot exclaimed. "I guess it could be pretty cool going to school here then. I'll have to see if I can out do my uncles," he teased.

We were all amused by Elliot's last comment, as we got a taste of his competitive side. We spent the rest of the meal filling Elliot in about some of his other uncles too, as well as some other aspects of our family history. I think he was feeling better about the situation now and not as concerned about having to lower his standards.

After dinner the boys went off to do their homework and I got to spend a little time with Jake. We were listening to music and even dancing to some of the songs, when Joshie came in to see me. I wasn't sure what he wanted, so Jake and I stopped to listen to what he had to say.

"Papa, my teacher said it would be Thanksgiving soon and Daddy and Poppy told me all about the Pilbrims and the Indians," he continued. "What it was like when you had dinner with the Indians."

That's when I heard some snickering outside the door. I was certain Dion and Trey had put Joshie up to this and were now having a good laugh as they listened in. Even Jake was smirking.

"Joshie, I'm not old enough to have been there with the Pilgrims," I explained. "That happened a very long time ago, before I was even born."

"But Daddy and Poppy told me you were there," Joshie insisted.

"They were using you to play a little joke on me, because they wanted to make me feel older than I am," I explained. "But don't you worry. I'll get even with them a little later!" I yelled out, in their direction. I wanted to be certain they heard my comment.

Joshie seemed a little concerned when I raised my voice, so I gave him a wink and a pat on the head. I also explained that I wasn't mad at him, but I was certainly going to make his Daddy and Poppy pay for this. I'm not sure he understood what I was saying, but he was glad that I wasn't upset with him for asking that question.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, it reminds me that I need to start making plans for that big day. A lot of the family will be coming home for the holiday and it will also be Elliot's first chance to meet most of them. This is usually an overwhelming event the first time, so we'll have to prepare him in advance for the houseful of people that will be descending upon us.

Later in the week, something else came up. I was home alone when the phone rang and it turned out to be a very interesting call.

"Hello."

"Good afternoon," the caller began. "May I speak with Mr. Joshua Currie?"

"This is he," I replied.

"My name is Edwin Courtney and I'm the attorney of record for the estate of the late Sean Kennedy. I understand you are now the legal guardian for his minor son."

"I am, but my son is actually his foster father," I explained. "I was made temporary guardian until my son's application to become a foster parent could be approved. That should happen shortly."

"Thank you for clearing that up," he responded, "but I will need to discuss liquidating the estate with either you or your son." "Why don't you give me your phone number and I'll have my son call you back," I offered.

Mr. Courtney said that would be fine and gave me the information. Then, we ended the call.

When Danny and Brandon came home, I explained about the call to them and they agreed to get in touch with Mr. Courtney the next day. I was happy to put it in their hands, but none of us knew what to expect, since Elliot's previous life was still mostly a mystery to us.

When they called Mr. Courtney back, he explained what would be involved in clearing up the estate. They were expecting most of what he told them, but what came as a surprise was that the monetary value of the estate was considerable. After the various issues had been explained, the first thing they agreed to do was to take Elliot back to the house, so he could pick up his things, especially his clothes. Although we had bought him a few items before he started school, he still could use more things to wear and this would correct that situation.

Danny and Brandon arranged a day off together, so they could take their son back to the home he had recently shared with his father. They also notified the school that Elliot wouldn't be in that day. They were a little concerned at first about having him miss another day of classes, but since Elliot kept insisting his old school had been much further ahead of where his classes were now. Not only that, but all of the papers and tests he brought home looked fine, so they decided there wouldn't be a problem with doing this. Besides, Elliot was the only one who could decide what he wanted to keep, after they got there.

Since they also understood this was going to be very difficult task for Elliot, Danny and Brandon spent some of the night before they went tying to prepare him for it.

"Elliot," Danny began, "you do remember that we're taking you back to your old house tomorrow, so you can pick out the things you'd like to keep. Right?"

"Yes! I remember," Elliot confirmed.

"And how do you feel about it?" Brandon asked.

"I don't know. Maybe a little nervous – scared even," Elliot told them. "I mean, I know I need to go back and get some of my things, but in a way I really don't want to see that place again. All I'm going to be thinking about is the time I spent there with my dad, and then I'll start thinking about what happened again and…" Elliot's voiced trailed off.

Brandon reached out and drew him close. He just wanted Elliot to know he was safe and loved.

"It's okay and you can cry if you need to," Brandon told him, as the tears began to roll down Elliot's cheeks.

"I'm sorry, but I can't think about him without this happening," Elliot admitted. "He was all I had."

"It's all right. It just takes time to heal, but you're going to be fine," Danny added, tenderly.

"It's good that you can grieve for him now, Elliot," Brandon, said next. "It's just part of working through this and being able to accept what happened."

"But if I accept it, does that mean I'll forget about my dad?" Elliot wondered.

"No, not at all," Brandon explained. "It will just mean that even though you know he was taken from you, you'll keep him in your heart and mind. Don't worry. You'll never forget him."

"I hope not," Elliot added.

Since that had been taken care of, Danny and Brandon got everything ready to take with them. This included a bunch of empty boxes, so they'd have something to pack Elliot's things in. After that, the three of them tried to get a good night's sleep.

The next morning, they got up early and set out for Elliot's hometown, Fox Chapel, which is a suburb of Pittsburgh. They even had time to stop for breakfast along the way and still arrived at the house ahead of Mr. Courtney, the lawyer. When Mr. Courtney showed up, they introduced themselves and followed him, as he led them inside. As he looked around, Brandon realized Elliot remained on the top step of the porch, peering through the opening, but not moving.

"It's all right," Brandon told him, while placing an arm around Elliot's shoulder. "Danny and I will be with you the entire time."

Elliot took hold of Brandon's hand, squeezed it tightly and took a deep breath, as he gathered up the courage to step across the threshold. It was a long and agonizing experience for Elliot, as the memories began flooding into his mind. After taking a few moments to collect himself, they began to sift through the remnants of his former life. Moving from room to room, Elliot would decide what he wanted to take back with him now, which things the lawyer would have sent to our home and which items would be sold off at an estate auction. It hadn't been that long since the funeral and the house still appeared to Elliot as it might have, had he been coming home from school for a long weekend.

Once he got over his nervousness, Elliot scoured the house for every last picture he could find, as his fathers followed him from room to room. Danny and Brandon placed the various selections in boxes and then loaded them in the Suburban, which they had borrowed from me for the day. They knew they could put much more into it, than they could in their car, and since they weren't certain how much they'd be bringing back, they felt this would be best.

"We've got to take the piano. I can't leave it," Elliot insisted. "I play, but more importantly, it's been in my family for generations. I think it may have even come over from Ireland with my great-great grandmother."

"Mr. Courtney, please make certain that the piano gets shipped to us then," Danny informed the lawyer.

"Certainly," he agreed.

"Oh, and my grandfather's desk," Elliot announced. "That's been in the family for a long time too."

"Mr. Courtney, please have the desk shipped as well," Danny added, which caused Elliot to offer an affirmative nod.

They packed up most of the items in Elliot's bedroom and then loaded those boxes into the Suburban too, but the lawyer would have to see that his bedroom furniture was shipped with the other items.

Once they left his bedroom, they went to Elliot's father's bedroom next. Elliot soon discovered that his father had kept some of his mother's things, so he decided that he wanted to keep them too, along with some of the items his dad had collected during his travels.

"Is that everything you want?" Brandon asked.

When Elliot looked up at him, his face began to contort and tears once again welled up in his eyes. Eventually, the sobbing began anew.

"It's all right, Elliot," Brandon told him. "Danny and I are here for you."

"I know," he confirmed. "It's just that my mom and dad spent their whole lives collecting the rest of this stuff and now it's all going to be gone, as if they were never here."

Elliot was weeping uncontrollably at this point, so Danny bent down and hugged him too.

"I can only imagine how difficult this is for you, Elliot, so go ahead and cry it out. It will do you good," Danny explained. "I know it's hard to think that some day some other family will be living in this house and the things you are familiar with won't be here any longer, but the important thing is that you have the items that mean the most to you."

Elliot began to calm down slightly, as he struggled to hold back the tears.

"Just remember that you're the most important thing your father had and he would want you to be taken care of," Danny continued. "We'll get this sorted out, and once Mr. Courtney has settled the estate, we'll have Uncle Mark set up an account for you, like my dad did for my brothers and me. Then, when the time comes, you'll have that money to use for college and to get a head start in life."

"But if my dad thought about all of these things and did so much to make sure I'd be taken care of," Elliot wondered, "then how come he didn't also have someone lined up to take care of me, if something happened to him?"

"I'm not certain," Danny responded, "but possibly he hadn't gotten around to that yet, thinking he had time to do it later. It could have also been that he was trying to find the perfect people to leave his most valued possession with and as of that moment he hadn't thought of anyone he felt was worthy. No matter why he failed to do it, I'm certain that your mom and dad loved you and were doing all they could to make sure you were taken care of. They wanted that, more than anything else."

After another minute, Elliot stopped crying and looked up at Danny.

"You really think so?" he asked.

"I'm positive!" Danny assured him. "Brandon and I have only been parents for a few weeks, but I know if anything were to happen to us, we'd want to feel assured that you were being taken care of and that your future was secure."

"I know you're right, but it's just so hard to let go of the rest of this," Elliot conceded.

"It's okay to be sad about it," Brandon told him, "just don't let it make you feel so badly that you can't think of anything else or are unable to go on with your life. Your parents wouldn't want you to spend the rest of your life dwelling on the past. They would just want you to be happy."

"Okay, just get me out of here then. I don't think I can stay here any longer," he stated, as he headed for the door.

Mr. Courtney agreed to arrange for a moving company to deliver the items Elliot had selected. He would have them shipped to our address and then hire an auction house to liquidate the rest. Once that was done, Danny would consult with Uncle Steve and Mark about establishing a trust for Elliot. He figured he needed help from both of them. Uncle Steve would provide the legal expertise and Mark would add his knowledge about financial matters, since he still manages the family's personal accounts and those of the Castaway Foundation. Once all of the arrangements were completed and everything was agreed to, Danny, Brandon and Elliot set out for their next destination.

"How are you feeling, Elliot?" Brandon asked.

"I'm just thinking about everything," Elliot admitted, "but I'll be okay. I'm glad we came, because it will be nice to have my own clothes and some of the things that will remind me of home. I'm really excited that I'm going to have my piano back."

"Yes, that was a surprise for us," Danny stated. "You never told us you played."

"Well, you don't have a piano and I didn't want to be a bother," Elliot confessed. "My dad had me start taking lessons when I was six, I think."

"Well, I for one can't wait to hear you play," Brandon told him.

"Really? You'd like that?" Elliot exclaimed, as if he didn't believe his foster fathers would be interested.

"Of course we would. Right, Danny?" Brandon replied.

"Absolutely," Danny agreed. "Whatever you do, we'll be there to support you. We're a family now."

"Okay, that's cool," Elliot agreed, "but I'll need to practice a bit first. It's been awhile since I've played."

"No problem," Brandon agreed. "I didn't expect you to just sit down and put on a concert the same day it was delivered."

"That's good," Elliot responded, "because I'm going to be a little rusty."

Once they left the house, they drove over to Elliot's old school. As they passed through the front gate, Brandon observed a brass plate with the school's name, plus the year it had been established.

"Benjamin Rush Academy, Established 1890! Ha, and you thought our school was old," Brandon teased.

Despite its apparent age, the immaculately maintained campus, with its Georgian Revival buildings and pristine landscaping impressed Danny and Brandon. After they checked in at the administration building, they discovered a tidbit of information they had not previously been aware of. They now felt they had to step outside, so they could discuss this with Elliot and let him make the final decision.

"Elliot, did you know your tuition had been paid for the entire year?" Danny asked.

"Um, no. I didn't," Elliot confirmed.

"Since it is, would you prefer to continue going here?" Danny followed. "If you did, it wouldn't upset us, and once your father's estate is settled, I'm certain there will be enough money to cover your tuition until you graduate. We would expect you to come home and be with us on vacations and holidays though."

Unexpectedly, Elliot looked like a deer caught in the headlights of a car. Then his complexion began to grow pale and his body started to tremble.

"Don't leave me here," Elliot whimpered. "Please, just take me home with you. I won't cause any trouble. I promise."

Brandon immediately recognized this reaction was similar to what he had seen when he went to enroll Elliot in the local school. Now, he understood that Elliot wasn't reluctant to be there or afraid of anything at the school. He was just terrified that if he wasn't with one of us, he might never see us again. Considering everything he'd already lost, it wasn't difficult to understand his fear, no matter how irrational it may be.

"It's settled then. You're not going to school here," Brandon announced, with a smile. "We just wanted you to have the option."

"I just want to stay with you," was all Elliot managed to get out, but the implication was clear. He wasn't about to let his new parents out of his sight for one moment longer than he absolutely had to.

Now that this had been settled, Danny went inside and informed the dean of students that Elliot would not be attending the remainder of the year and signed the required forms to have his records transferred. Then they went to Elliot's old dorm room, to collect his things.

Elliot's dorm was a lot different than the dorms Danny and Brandon had experienced in college. This particular dorm appeared to be a typical, but nice, colonial house. The first floor served as an apartment for the teacher who was responsible for the ten boys living upstairs. The second floor consisted of five small, but comfortable, bedrooms, which were each shared by a pair of students. There was also a large living room, so they could watch TV or hang out as a group. Elliot told his fathers there were different styles of dorms on campus, with many of them being homes like this one, but there were also a couple of college-style dorms, with several students per floor.

Elliot's former roommate, Thomas, was there when they arrived and greeted Elliot warmly. Thomas spent a few minutes telling Elliot how sorry he was and they talked about the time they had been roommates. It was a tearful and touching reunion.

When Thomas had first been told about what had happened to Elliot's father, he was also informed that Elliot probably wouldn't be returning for the term. Since he didn't expect Elliot back, he had neatly packed all of Elliot's clothing into his luggage. Then, with the help of the others on the floor, they packed the rest of Elliot's belongings into boxes, so they would be ready when someone came to pick them up.

The other boys living in Elliot's dorm had, for the most part, been sheltered from the harsh realities of the world. That's why, when the news that one of their own had been involved in such a brutal tragedy, it became the cause of great consternation. By helping to pack his things, it gave them the feeling that they at least had some control over what happened and were doing something to help their friend during his time of need.

Danny and Brandon let the boys have their privacy, as they helped to carry Elliot's belongings to the car. Clearly, they had all been close. Thomas gave Elliot a hug before he left and told him again that he was sorry about what had happened. He then wished Elliot luck in his new home, which seemed to mean a great deal to Elliot. Before he left, Elliot thanked each of his friends for their help and then climbed into the backseat for the long ride home.

The rest of the trip went fairly well. By the time they returned home, Elliot was feeling more upbeat and eager to tell me about the things he brought back and the items that were going to be shipped here. When he finished, I told him we'd clear space in the family room for the baby grand and I think that pleased him a great deal.

Danny and Brandon also told me in private how Elliot had reacted, both at the house and at the school, just in case a similar incident occurred. They were worried something like that might be triggered again when the items were delivered. They also were less than positive that the separation issue had been put to rest and wouldn't crop up again. Elliot seemed to be holding up fairly well, although I could tell this must have been a very rough day for him. Hopefully, he'll be able to put it behind him and continue to move on.

Before Elliot's things arrived at the house, Aunt Sally contacted Danny and told him that Brandon and he had been formally approved as foster parents.

"I've also transferred Elliot's custody from your father's name to yours," she added, "so now you're officially Elliot's guardians."

"That's great news, Aunt Sally," Danny confirmed. "I'm sure Brandon will be happy to hear this too."

After he ended the call with her, Danny called Brandon to tell him, and then he called home to inform me. He said he would tell Elliot the good news tonight, at dinner, but I'm not sure if it will hold much meaning for him. As far as he was concerned, they'd been his foster fathers all along.

That evening at dinner, the boys continued their tradition of asking Elliot about his day.

"So how did your day go, Elliot?" Danny asked.

"It was good," Elliot told him.

"How about your new friend?" Brandon followed. "Did you spend more time with him?"

"I did! Hayden's really nice and I like him a lot," Elliot confirmed. "He seems to like me too and when we got talking about things, we discovered that we're both into swimming, although I'm more into diving. He swims on the school team and we were thinking I could join and start diving again, once I get the cast off."

Elliot then held up his arm for all of us to see, even though we were well aware of what he was talking about. However, this wasn't going to be as easy as he expected.

"I think you might have to wait until next year," Brandon advised.

"Nah. I'll be fine, once I get this stupid thing off," Elliot stated. "When do you think that will be?"

"We should be able to remove it before Christmas," Danny confirmed, "but you'll still have to take it easy on your wrist for a while after that. If you try to do too much too soon, then you'll be taking a huge risk that it might get injured again. Since the swim team's season ends in January, I think it will probably be best for you to wait until next year."

Elliot looked crushed and had trouble hiding his disappointment. He was hoping to be able to join the team, if only for a short time.

"Sorry, bud, but you don't want to risk doing permanent damage to your wrist, do you?" Danny asked, apologetically, once he saw Elliot's reaction to his previous statement.

"You know, Elliot, I thought you might be an athlete when I first saw you," Brandon stated, as a way to change the subject. "Do you play any other sports?"

"Just tennis," Elliot confirmed. "I like to run too, but I'm not much for team sports, so I'd say diving is what I'm best at."

"I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but the school has a tennis team too," Danny explained. "It starts up in the spring and your wrist should be healed enough by then, so maybe you could sign up to play tennis."

Elliot began to perk up a bit.

"Yeah, I'd like that," he agreed. He was looking slightly less disappointed.

That seemed to put an end to this minor crisis, but it forced us to realize that we didn't know very much about Elliot. We haven't wanted to push him, in order to get more information about his life, but that has merely put us at a severe disadvantage. So far, Elliot hasn't revealed a great deal about himself, and since he hasn't been much of a self-promoter, we are still in the dark about many of the details concerning him. We're hoping he'll be more forthcoming in the future, but I guess he'll reveal more to us when he's ready.

"By the way, Elliot," I began, while grinning at him, "I don't know if you realize this, but Danny and Brandon received some great news today. They are now officially your foster parents."

Danny and Brandon were beaming, but Elliot was looking wary.

"But I thought they were already!" Elliot countered.

Now, he glanced from one to the other, as he sought an answer to this dilemma.

"We were, but not officially," Danny told him. "Our application to become foster parents hadn't been approved yet,"

"Then how did I get to come to live here?" Elliot wanted to know next.

"It was because we were able to pull a rabbit out of the hat first," Danny said, with a chuckle. "Since my dad was already approved as a foster parent, I suggested that you could be assigned to him temporarily, so you could come to live with us immediately. It would also give us time to have our application approved. When that happened, we intended on having guardianship switched over to us and we were informed that happened earlier today. Since we've successfully passed the final hurdle, we are now legally your foster fathers."

Elliot flashed them a huge grin.

"So now I can stay with you for good. Right?" he asked.

"Most definitely," Brandon answered. "We want that very much."

"Yes, Brandon and I have always wanted to be parents," Danny explained, "so this is the first step in making you our son."

At this point, all three of them were smiling broadly, as if they had just won the lottery. Heck, in a way, maybe they had. They each were getting what they wanted and that's what really counts. Isn't it?

That night, I finished calling my other children – the ones that didn't live at home, to confirm their holiday plans. While I was doing this, I also took the opportunity to remind them about Elliot, so they wouldn't be too surprised by his presence when they came home. In a way, I was looking forward to introducing them.

I also thought there was a possibility that they'd help us learn more about Elliot while they were here. I'm positive the others will ask him a ton of questions during their stay, so I'm hoping he'll open up a bit about his own life. It's possible that while he's learning about them, he will, in turn, share more about himself. I'm optimistic that the conversations might spark memories of things he hasn't divulged to us yet and this will get him to talk about things he hadn't previously thought of. Anyways, that is what I am praying will happen.

The next afternoon, Elliot came home in a good mood. I didn't question him about his day and saved that honor for his dads. They really liked to find out how he had been doing while we were eating dinner. True to form, that's exactly what happened.

"Elliot, did you have a good day at school?" Brandon asked, shortly after we began eating.

"It was great, and guess what?" he replied. "What?" Brandon responded.

"Well I told Hayden I wouldn't be able to join the swim team until next year, but I might try out for the tennis team in the spring," Elliot confided. "As it turns out, he plays tennis too."

"What a wonderful surprise!" Danny mused. "It looks as if you and your new friend have quite a bit in common. Maybe you can even become doubles partners."

"I've never played doubles, but I'd give it a try, if Hayden wanted to be partners," Elliot agreed. "I like Hayden a lot and I think we're going to be really good friends."

"That's great!" Brandon stated. "See, I told you that you wouldn't be alone for long. You've made a new friend and not only does that give you someone to hang out with at school, but now you also have someone to play sports with too."

"I guess you were right, but back then I was kind of afraid that you were going to leave me for good," he confessed. "It was silly, but I thought if you left me, well maybe you might never come back."

"Don't worry," Danny assured him, "that will never happen. As far as we're concerned, we're together for the long haul."

Elliot smiled in response and it appeared as if he had just received the reassurance he wanted, and possibly even needed. I think it also made Danny and Brandon feel good too, since they now understood Elliot was just as eager to be with them, as they were to have him.

The following day, while the boys were in school, Elliot's things arrived at the house. The moving company called first, to make certain someone would be home, and it gave me time to prepare for the truck's arrival. After getting off the phone, I immediately went up to Elliot's room and started taking apart the bed that was already in there. I then moved the various pieces into the hallway and did the same with the rest of the furniture that was in there, except for the dresser. I left it there, so Elliot could transfer his belonging out of it first, but I knew Elliot would be eager to use the bedroom set he had shipped here.

I answered the door when the truck pulled in and directed the movers where I wanted each item. First, I had them take all the bedroom furniture up to Elliot's room. They placed his dresser next to the one he'd been using and then put his grandfather's desk in there too. They even assembled the bed for me before they were done, so I thanked them for their effort.

The piano came next and was the most difficult piece they had to deal with. I had already made room for it in the family room, so they very carefully brought it in and placed it where I wanted. It looked very nice there and I felt Elliot would be very pleased about its location. Elliot had been telling us about the piano ever since he came back from Fox Chapel. He was nearly gushing as he explained that he had taken lessons for many years and could play fairly well. Now, we'd put him to the test and make him actually show us.

Once the piano was set up, the movers brought in the remaining pieces and then I made a quick phone call. I had called this person earlier, once I'd learned the movers were on the way, but now I was calling him back, so I could advise him the item he was going to work on was in place. It was the same man who tuned the pianos for the school district, but this time I was going to have him tune Elliot's piano. This way, everything would be perfect when the boys got home from school.

Jesse, Elliot and Joshie arrived home about an hour after the piano tuner left and I greeted them as they walked through the door. However, before they raced off for their snack or to change, I wanted to spring this surprise on Elliot.

"Elliot, I have something to show you," I announced, and then asked him to follow me.

As soon as we walked into the family room and he saw the piano, he practically burst with excitement. He raced over to it and began to tap the keys. I think he wanted to see if it was in tune.

"Oh, sweet! It's finally here!" he shouted, while also uttering a maniacal laugh. "It looks great where you put it and sounds great too."

"It does look good in here," I agreed, "and I had a man come and tune it, shortly after it was delivered."

"You did? Thank you," Elliot told me, as he gave me a hug. He was really appreciative that I had done it for him.

"Okay, everyone come here," he requested. "I might be a little rusty, but I'll be able to get through a song. I've been practicing a little on a piano at school, so I'd be ready when mine finally arrived."

Jesse, Joshie and I all made ourselves comfortable and smiled in anticipation.

Elliot walked over and sat down at the keyboard. He then cracked his knuckles dramatically, just before he reached out to the keyboard and banged out the worst version of 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star' any of us had ever heard. After he started playing, Jesse and I looked at each other and rolled our eyes. We were certain if any of the neighbors were passing by they would have thought we were torturing cats.

When I saw that Joshie was about to say something, I placed my hand over his mouth and put my finger in front of my lips, to signal him not to say anything. Needless to say, we couldn't wait for Elliot to finish.

"Was that great or was it great?" Elliot asked, grinning from ear-to-ear. "What did you think?"

We were all too stunned to answer, but we also didn't want to hurt his feelings. However, before we could think of a graceful way to escape this awkward situation, Elliot spoke again.

"Wait! I'll play another song for you," he suggested, much to our dismay.

"No, that's okay," Jesse replied, before Elliot could begin. "I've got a ton of homework I need to do, so I've got to get going." Elliot looked at me next.

"I'm sorry, Elliot, but I, uh, have to get dinner started," I blurted out.

As quickly as our legs would carry us, Jesse, Joshie and I got up and began to charge out of the room. Before we reached the door and completed our escape, Elliot began playing again.

We all stopped dead in our tracks this time. Even Joshie recognized the tune Elliot was playing now and commented on it immediately. It was George Winston's 'Peanuts Theme.' Joshie knew it because of the specials he had watched on television during the holidays.

I know my mouth was hanging open at this point, but I wasn't certain about the other pair. I was still too stunned to see how they were doing. Elliot was playing this upbeat melody flawlessly. Slowly, we turned around and made our way back toward the piano. We then stood beside it until Elliot finished playing. Once the song ended, Elliot looked up at us and started laughing.

"The looks on your faces were priceless when I played that first piece," he stated, with a chuckle. Then we all began to laugh too.

"That was mean!" Joshie shouted.

"I thought you were crazy, if you thought you had talent, at least when I first heard you playing," Jesse interjected.

After saying this, Jesse flashed Elliot the finger, hoping I wouldn't notice, but I did. Rather than say something about that, I had something else I wanted to arrange first. However, I would need Elliot's help.

"I want you to do that again when your dads, Jake and the others get home from work," I urged. "I want you to do it exactly the same way that you did for us, so we can see their reactions too."

"Okay. I can do that," Elliot agreed.

I then explained to Joshie what we were going to do later, so he wouldn't accidentally give Elliot's little joke away prematurely. Once I thought he understood, I sent him off to play.

While we waited for the others to arrive home, Elliot went up to his room and started to get it organized. He seemed just as thrilled to have his old bedroom set, as he had been about having the piano. Eagerly, he moved things from the dresser he had been using and put them into the dresser that was just delivered. He then had Jesse help him move the old dresser out of the room, so he could arrange his bedroom the way he wanted it. He had Jesse help him place his grandfather's desk catty-corner, and when he showed me what he had done later, I told him I'd buy a floor lamp he could place in the void behind it, so he'd have plenty of light to do his work.

Once his dresser was also where he wanted it, Elliot made his bed and then just stood in the doorway, so he could admire how everything looked. I think having his furniture in the room made him feel as if he really belonged here now. He also felt more comfortable knowing he was going to be able to sleep in his old bed again.

Later that evening, during dinner, Elliot announced that he wanted to play something for us on the piano after we'd finished eating. When everyone agreed, he made it sound as if this was the first time he was going to play since it had arrived. For that reason, we all followed him into the family room, along with Joshie and Jesse. We took our seats, to listen to him play and Elliot sat down at the keyboard. After going through precisely the same knuckle cracking warm-up, he then proceeded to play the second worst version of 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star' I have ever heard.

"What did you think?" he asked his unsuspecting audience when he'd finished. "Pretty good, huh?"

Joshie, Jesse and I were trying hard to keep from laughing as we scanned the others' faces. Danny looked as if he'd just swallowed a whole lemon and Brandon's eyes were bugging out of his head, while his mouth hung open. The others looked equally horrified.

"Holy shit!" Jake exclaimed, before he could catch himself.

"Here. I'll play another song for you," Elliot added, before anyone else responded.

Elliot, Joshie, Jesse and I were nearly busting a gut, trying to contain our mirth. I had Joshie sitting with me and had to place my hand over his mouth on occasion, to keep him from giving us away. The others merely thought I was trying to keep him from saying anything about how poorly Elliot had played.

"That's all right," Danny commented, after he finally found his voice again. "You can do that another time."

The others were slowly getting up and moving toward the door, but Elliot ignored their protests. This time he selected a more formal piece of music and began playing Beethoven's 'Fur Elise.'

The rest of them were nearly out of the room when the first notes began to waft through the room and suddenly Danny, Brandon, Jake and the others came to an abrupt halt. As they turned to look back at Elliot, to make sure he was the one actually playing, their mouths were all hanging open. Once they recovered from their surprise, they began looking at the rest of us, to see how we were reacting too. When they looked toward me, I could no longer contain myself and burst out laughing. As soon as I did that, Elliot, Joshie and Jesse began laughing too. The others were still looking bewildered, at least for a few more seconds.

"You set us up, didn't you?" Danny asked, as the rest of them began to catch on.

"I didn't," I responded. "Elliot did. He did the same thing to Jesse, Joshie and me shortly after he got home from school. I just suggested he might want to play the same trick on you."

Everyone was laughing loudly now.

"You did have me going for a minute," Brandon admitted. "I was beginning to think your father had wasted a lot of money on piano lessons for you." Elliot feigned a pout.

"Yes, and I was beginning to wonder why we had Dad make room for the piano in our house," Danny added, "if it was only going to be used to torture us."

"Hey!" Elliot whined, mockingly. "It wasn't torture, just a tease."

Elliot then sat down and started playing Pachelbel's 'Cannon in D' for them, followed by Beethoven's 'Moonlight Sonata. As the notes drifted through the house, we were all swept away by Elliot's talent and the beautiful music he was producing.

"I think you've found your accompanist," I told Dion, once Elliot finished. "You'll even be able to practice at home now and won't have to rely on so many others to help you out."

"Damn, he's good," Dion agreed. "I think you're right. He can play for me anytime, if he's willing."

"Maybe," was all Elliot said, smugly, in reply.

"Play the other song. I liked it better," Joshie chirped in. "It was more fun."

That brought a grin to Elliot's face and he began playing the 'Peanuts Theme' again, but this time it was meant only for Joshie. My little man knew this too, so he walked over and sat beside Elliot on the piano bench, just as if he belonged there. It was really cute to see.

Elliot had now successfully proven to us what an accomplished pianist he was and managed to have a little fun with us in the process. We could also see how great he felt, now that he had been reunited with his piano. It was almost as if he'd just hooked up with a long-lost friend, and in a way, I guess he had.

Just when we thought things were calming down, I received another unexpected phone call.

"Hello, may I speak with Dr. Daniel Currie, please?" the strange voice on the end of the line asked.

"He's at work now, may I take a message?" I replied.

"What about Dr. Brandon O'Hara?" the voice asked next.

"He's also at work," I stated. "May I take a message?"

"To whom am I speaking?" the voice asked again. I was beginning to get annoyed.

"I'm Daniel's father," I replied. "I live here too."

"Then I will leave a message with you," the voice finally agreed. "My name is Thomas Dalsgaard, Esquire. I was a close personal friend of Kirsten Kennedy and settled her estate. I have just received a communiqué from the late Mrs. Kennedy's family in Copenhagen about taking custody of her son, Elliot. They've only recently learned of his father's death and that Elliot is now in the care of the individuals I've requested to speak with."

"That is correct," I replied, "but we were unaware that Mrs. Kennedy had any living relatives. I'm certain this news will be of interest to both of them."

"I am positive it will be, so I will need one of them to contact me about this matter as quickly as they are able," he responded. "They can reach me at my office at 555-726-2666. I think it would be in their best interest to not delay doing this, if they hope to have any chance of retaining custody of the young man."

"Thank you and I will relay your message to them," I answered. "I expect you'll be receiving a call back from them before the end of the day."

"Thank you for your kind assistance with this matter, Sir. Good day." he added, before he hung up.

As soon as that call was disconnected, I called Danny's cell phone and left a message.

"Danny, it's dad. Call me as soon as you can. It's kind of an emergency."

I hung up and waited for him to return my call. About fifteen minutes later, the phone rang.

"Dad, it's Danny. What's wrong?" he wanted to know.

"I just received a call from an attorney claiming he's received some correspondence from Elliot's mother's relatives in Denmark," I told him. "He says they are inquiring about taking custody of Elliot and he says he needs to speak with you or Brandon as soon as possible. I'm afraid it sounds as if they might want to take custody of Elliot."

"Damn, I don't like the sound of that," Danny stated. "I'll call him back right away and see what's up. What's the contact information?" I gave it to him.

"I was afraid this might happen eventually," Danny admitted, "although I hoped it wouldn't come to that. We'll talk this over with Elliot too and then do whatever is best for him."

"I knew that's what you'd say," I agreed. "Just let me know what you find out."

"I will, Dad, and thanks," Danny added, before hanging up.

Danny immediately called the number I'd given him.

"Law offices of Anderson, Dalsgaard, Jones and Weber," the receptionist answered.

"Hello. I'm returning a call from Mr. Thomas Dalsgaard," Danny stated.

"May I ask who's calling?" she responded, so Danny gave her his name. "Please hold and I'll see if he's available."

Danny stayed on the line, while he waited to be connected. He was mildly annoyed by the music being played, which was provided so he wouldn't think he'd been disconnected. He thought it was too upbeat and cheery, considering the dire reason he was calling. After a brief delay, a man picked up.

"Dr. Currie, this is Thomas Dalsgaard. Thank you for getting back to me so quickly," he stated.

"Well, my father said it was urgent and concerned Elliot," Danny replied. "Something about a letter from his mother's relatives."

"Yes, that is correct," the lawyer confirmed. "I received a communiqué from Mrs. Kennedy's uncle. In it he states that he is planning to arrive in this country on the nineteenth of this month and expects to take custody of the boy at that time. He is planning to return to Denmark with him."

"Whoa! That's just a few days from now!" Danny exclaimed. "Not only that, but he's making demands, so this isn't just an inquiry into Elliot's status."

"That is the way the letter is worded," the lawyer confirmed.

"Okay, then I'll need you to contact my lawyer and transmit a copy of that letter to him, so he can advise me of my options," Danny informed him.

He then he gave Mr. Dalsgaard all of Uncle Steve's information.

"I will do that immediately," Mr. Dalsgaard agreed.

Danny hung up and called Uncle Steve's office. Even though he felt this was an emergency, Danny had to hold for a couple of minutes, until he was connected.

"Uncle Steve, it's Danny. Have you heard that Brandon and I have taken in a boy?" he asked.

"I have," Steve confirmed. "Your father mentioned it the last time we spoke."

"I'm glad he told you," Danny agreed, "but we've run into a snag."

"What type of snag?" Steve asked. "I take it this must be of a legal nature concerning custody of the boy? Has someone raised objections because you and Brandon are gay?"

"No, it's not that, but we may lose custody," Danny confirmed. "I just got a call from Elliot's mother's former lawyer. He claims that Elliot's mother's uncle from Denmark sent him a letter stating he will be here on the nineteenth to pick Elliot up. He's planning to take Elliot back to Denmark with him. I gave the lawyer your information and told him he should contact you and fax a copy of the letter to your office."

"That's fine, Danny. Just don't panic," Steve told him. "I will get in touch with the other lawyer and go over the letter. Once I've heard what the other attorney has to say and have had an opportunity to study the letter, I'll let you know what you're facing. Just stay calm."

"I know and thanks, Uncle Steve," Danny agreed. "I'd hate to lose custody of Elliot, especially now. He's been making good progress lately and I'd hate to see that negated by creating more upheaval in his life."

"I understand, Danny, and we'll take care of this," Steve assured him, before he hung up.

Danny waited until he got home from the hospital to pull Brandon aside, so he could tell him about what was happening. He knew this was going to be a tough conversation, because Brandon had begun to dote on Elliot like a mother hen and was as attached to the boy, as any new parent would be.

"Brandon, Dad got an interesting call from a lawyer today who used to represent Elliot's mother," Danny explained. "Apparently, she has family living in Denmark and they want to take Elliot."

"What! Why are they just coming forward now?" Brandon wanted to know. "His father died almost a month ago!"

"I spoke with the lawyer and he mentioned that they just found out about Elliot's Dad," Danny explained. "I had him send the letter to Uncle Steve and he's going to look into this and see what our options are."

"Well that's simple. They can't have him?" Brandon choked out, emotionally. "Elliot's never mentioned them, so does he even know who they are? We can't just let them take him to another country to live with strangers."

"Brand, they're his family. If they press the issue, I don't know what we'll be able to do. That's why I called Uncle Steve, as soon as I got off the phone with the other lawyer," Danny stated. "I know you've grown attached to Elliot and so have I, but we need to do what's in his best interest. Let's give Uncle Steve time to look into it, before we get too upset."

Danny moved closer to Brandon and wrapped his arms around him. He knew his partner was upset and wanted to calm him down. Slowly, Brandon began to respond.

"I know you're right," Brandon acknowledged, "but after all he's been through it's just not fair this has to happen. He's finally starting to act like a normal kid again and I don't want him to suddenly regress. We can't just let them take him now, he's our son."

Brandon began to choke up again, so Danny tightened his embrace. He continued to hold him until Brandon eventually calmed down.

"Look, let's let the lawyers do their jobs and see what happens," Danny suggested. "Right now you need to calm down, for Elliot's sake. If he sees you this upset, think how it's going to make him feel. Dad's handled a lot of adoptions and had to deal with other relatives, so let's go talk to Pop and Dad, so we can hear what they have to say."

Brandon took a moment to regain control of his emotions, and then they came and sat down with Jake and me, so the four of us could talk this out. Over the next few minutes, we went over what Danny had done already and then I thought of something else.

"Did you call your Aunt Sally and let her know what was going on?" I asked.

"No, I hadn't thought about that," Danny replied. "I take it you think I should?"

"Actually, I do," I confirmed. "Elliot is technically a ward of the state and under Sally's jurisdiction. He's been placed with you, as foster parents, but I think anything pertaining to his legal status will need to go through her. You need to call her and tell her what you know."

"Okay, I can do that," Danny agreed. "Do you think it would be all right to call her at home? I'm sure she's probably left work already."

"Yes, in this case I don't think she'll mind," I informed him.

Danny took out his phone an immediately dialed her number.

"Aunt Sally, this is Danny," he began. "Something's come up and I thought you should know about it."

"Is there a problem?" she asked. "I hope nothing has happened."

"Oh, no, Aunt Sally," Danny began, "nothing has happened on this end, it's just that we've heard from Elliot's mother's lawyer. He received a letter from her Danish uncle and he thinks he's coming over here to take custody of Elliot."

"Not unless it's been cleared by my office," she stated, forcefully. "I don't care if he is related. What I care about is that he's fit to handle the responsibility of raising a child. What have you done so far?"

"Well, I've called Uncle Steve and he's going to handle working with the other lawyer for us," Danny explained. "He's going to speak with him and see what information he can provide and then he'll look at the letter the uncle sent. He said he'd get back to me after he's had a chance to make his calls and let me know where things stand."

"I'm glad you are letting Steve handle this," Sally confirmed. "That was a wise move on your part. Once you hear back from him, give me a call and tell me what he says. I'm going to stay on top of this situation and nothing will happen without my approval."

"Thank you, Aunt Sally," Danny stated. "That makes me feel a lot better now."

The call ended shortly thereafter and Danny explained to Brandon, Jake and me what she'd said. At least it gave us another ally who would be looking out for our interests too, as well as Elliot's.

We were all nervous wrecks at dinner, but we didn't want to say anything and risk upsetting Elliot until we had a better handle on things. We all tried to make everything seem as normal as possible, but I'm not sure how effective we were. Elliot didn't seem suspicious, but I was convinced he sensed something was wrong. He just didn't know if it had to do anything with him.

Later that evening, Steve called Danny back on his cell phone.

"Danny, I have some news for you," he began. "Elliot's great-uncle will be here on the nineteenth, but he'd like to speak with Elliot before then. He just wants to have a conversation with the boy, so he can introduce himself and get to know his nephew. The uncle speaks English fairly well, but he does have a very thick accent. I just need to know if you'd mind if I gave him your number?"

"No, I don't mind. Go ahead, Uncle Steve. You can give him our home number," Danny agreed, "and we'll prepare Elliot for his call. Do you know when we should expect it?"

"No, but I'll get that information from him and then pass it on to you, after I call to give him your phone number," Steve answered. "Would it be all right if I tried to set it up for tomorrow around this time?

"That would be fine," Danny agreed. "Thanks, Uncle Steve. You're the best."

When Danny hung up, he went to find Brandon, Jake and me again, so he could tell us what he'd discovered. Once he'd filled us in, Brandon and Danny went to find Elliot, so they could break the news to him. They found their foster son in the family room and took him to their room to chat.

"Elliot, I got some news today and I really don't know how to break it to you, so I'm just going to get to the point. We've learned that your mother has relatives that live in Denmark and they're interested in raising you," Danny told him. "They'd like to speak with you first, so they can introduce themselves and see how you're doing. They'll be calling sometime in the next couple of days."

Elliot looked confused and slightly panicked.

"You said I wouldn't have to leave you," he began, and he started to tense up. "Please don't make me go."

"Elliot, we're not going to let you go anywhere, unless you decide it's what you want," Brandon replied, trying to reassure him.

"Did you know your mother had relatives in Europe?" Danny asked next.

"Yes, my dad mentioned them a few times," Elliot confirmed, "but they never came to visit or anything. I've never met them and I don't even think they speak English."

"I understand your uncle does speak English," Danny informed him, "and he's the one who's going to call to speak with you."

"I don't want to talk to him," Elliot whined, while looking very concerned. "I don't want him trying to convince me to come live with him. He's a total stranger. What would I do over there? I can't even speak Spanish, and I've been taking that in school, so how am I going to get by in Danish?"

Danny and Brandon sat down on either side of their son. Reassuringly, Brandon put his arm around Elliot's shoulder.

"As of right now, you're not going anywhere," Danny told him. "Your uncle just wants to call so he can ask how you're doing. Just talk to him and be honest about how you feel."

"I don't like the way this sounds," Elliot responded. "You said he wants me to live there, so how am I supposed to talk him out of that? I want to stay here with you. You said we were a family."

That being said, Elliot pulled away and stormed out of the room.

When I heard a door slam upstairs, I jumped up and headed to Danny and Brandon room to discover what had happened. Jesse had reacted the same way, but I told him to stay downstairs. When he said he wanted to see if it was Elliot who had done that, I told him there was nothing he could do, so he should stay put. I suggested it would be best for him to let things calm down first, before he went upstairs.

When I reached Danny and Brandon's room, they both looked upset. They quickly told me about their conversation with Elliot and how he had reacted. They asked if I thought they should go talk to him again, but I suggested it would be best to leave him alone and let him come to terms with it on his own. They could go find him later and make sure he was all right, but for now it was best to give him a little time alone.

Steve called back a short time later and confirmed we would be receiving a call the very next evening. Danny and Brandon then sat down and determined how they wanted to handle the call and ran their thoughts by me. I agreed with what they mentioned and didn't see any problems with what they had planned to do. I did warn them that if Elliot's relatives wanted to push the issue, it could end up being decided in the courts.

Everyone seemed to be on edge for the rest of the evening and the whole next day. I'm sure there was a myriad of thoughts going through their minds, with each of them trying to think of a way to prevent this from happening. However, no one came up with any miraculous plan, so things were going to go ahead as they agreed.

All through dinner, Danny and Brandon were on edge, and it continued as they waited for the call. The phone rang almost exactly on the agreed upon time. At least one thing was obvious – the caller was very punctual.

"Hello," Danny answered.

"Hello, may I speak to Mr. Daniel Currie," the voice said.

"This is he," Danny responded.

"Good Evening. My name is Soren Hagen, Elliot Kennedy's great-uncle," he informed Danny. "My wife and I only recently learned about his father's death, and as we are the closest living relatives, we want Elliot to come live with us."

"Well, Mr. Hagen, I understand your concern and interest in this matter," Danny replied, "but we have discussed this matter with Elliot and he is not eager to move to another country, especially one where he doesn't know anyone or speak the language. Unless you convince him otherwise and can prove to us that this would be in Elliot's best interest, we are willing to fight this in the courts to keep it from happening."

"We're his family and he will learn the language," Mr. Hagen said. "I am certain he will be perfectly happy, after a period of adjustment."

"That might be the case if he was motivated, but after all he's been through I'm not sure such a radical change would be so easy for him to adjust to," Danny challenged. "From what he's told us, he certainly hasn't shown any interest in leaving the country."

"May I speak with the boy then, to hear what he has to say?" Mr. Hagen requested.

"Certainly. If you'll wait a moment then I'll go get him for you," Danny replied.

He set down the phone and then walked into the other room to find Elliot.

"Elliot, your great uncle is on the phone and would like to speak with you," Danny informed him.

"Do I have to talk to him?" Elliot replied.

"I think you owe him at least that much of a courtesy. After all, he is your closest living relative and that has to account for something," Danny answered.

Reluctantly, Elliot got up and walked over to the phone.

"Hello," he said.

"Elliot, this is your great-uncle, Soren Hagen. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, thank you," Elliot answered politely, but curtly.

"I am happy to hear that. I would like to meet you, if you don't mind," Mr. Hagen stated.

"I'd like to meet you too," Elliot said, "but I don't want to come live with you."

"Why is that? Mr. Hagen asked.

"Because I'm an American and everything I know is here," Elliot answered. "I don't want to move to another country to live with people I don't know."

Mr. Hagen didn't respond, but Elliot could hear him speaking to someone in the background in a strange sounding language.

"I'm sorry for the delay," Mr. Hagen said a short time later, "but your Great-Aunt Gretta wanted to know what we were discussing. I stopped to share our conversation."

"She doesn't speak English?" Elliot asked.

"No, I am sorry. She does not," Mr. Hagen answered.

"So if you weren't home, I wouldn't have anyone to talk to, would I?" Elliot asked next. "What would I do when you were at work or what if there was some kind of emergency?"

"Everything will be fine. Once you learn Danish you will be able to speak with her." Mr. Hagen answered, but Elliot wasn't moved by that argument.

"Who knows how long that would take," Elliot replied. "What would I do whenever you weren't around then?"

Mr. Hagen did not respond immediately.

"Yes, I see that would be a problem," Mr. Hagen finally agreed, after a short pause, "but I am certain we will work something out."

"I was wondering, what type of job do you have?" Elliot asked, switching gears.

"I am in the Danish National Air Squadron," Mr. Hagen replied. "I used to fly helicopters, and still do on occasion, just not as frequently as I used to."

"Sounds like fun," Elliot answered, without much enthusiasm.

"I enjoy it," Mr. Hagen told him.

"If you're in the Air Force, doesn't that mean you go away for weeks at a time?" Elliot pressed.

"Here, my unit is part of the Navy, and yes, I do have to go away sometimes," Mr. Hagen agreed. "However, as I said, we will work something out. We can discuss this further when I arrive."

"So you're coming here then?" Elliot asked, somewhat startled.

"Yes, I will be coming to visit on the nineteenth day of this month." Mr. Hagen said next. "Will that meet with your approval?"

"But that's only a couple of days from now!" Elliot stated, as a slight chill ran up his spine.

"Yes, this is true," Mr. Hagen confirmed, "but I am anxious to meet you and make sure you are all right after your ordeal."

"I'm fine," Elliot insisted. "It's been a few weeks now and I'm settled here."

"That may be, but I would still prefer to see that for myself," Mr. Hagen informed him. "Would that be all right for you?"

"I guess so," Elliot answered

"Excellent!" Mr. Hagen concurred. "Very well, my boy, I will see you in a few days. Now, will you put Mr. Currie back on the phone?"

Elliot didn't answer him, but called out instead.

"Danny, he wants to talk to you again." Danny came back and took the phone.

"This is Danny," he stated.

Mr. Hagen then told Danny about his travel arrangements, including when he would arrive on our doorstep. After hearing him out, Danny agreed his plans would be acceptable.

Once he hung up, Danny and Brandon went to find Elliot. They discovered him in the family room, alone. He was sitting at the piano, in the dark.

"Well, what did you think?" Danny asked him.

"I think I'd hate living there, but he wasn't listening," Elliot said. "His wife doesn't even speak a word of English. He had to speak gibberish to her just to let her know what we were talking about."

"Well, if you move there," Brandon stated, "I'm sure you'd pick up the language in no time."

"That's not the point," Elliot responded, forcefully. "Haven't I been through enough? If he wanted to help me, then why doesn't he leave me alone and not take me away from my country? If I go over there, I'll be like one of those foreign exchange students we have at school, except I'll be the one standing out instead.

"His wife doesn't speak any English," he continued, "and Uncle Soren is in the Navy. He is gone for weeks at a time, so what will I do? I'll go nuts talking to myself."

"Well, you'll just have to try your hardest to learn Danish then," Danny told him.

Elliot's shoulders sagged.

"It sounded awful. All I could think about were those old movies about the Vikings," Elliot whined.

"Yeah, that is one of the countries the Vikings came from," Danny agreed.

"Great! They'll be coming to get me in one of those wooden boats with the dragon's head on the front," Elliot scoffed, sarcastically. "I can picture the horns on their helmets already."

Danny and Brandon had to choke back their laughter.

"Better work on your upper arm strength then," Brandon teased. "You'll probably have to man the oars and row."

Elliot was not amused.

"And you'd better hope your Aunt isn't a big fat lady," Danny added, "because if she is and starts to sing, it will be all over for you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Elliot asked, with a frown.

"Well, you must know the old expression that 'it's not over until the fat lady sings,' like in the opera," Danny explained.

"Real funny," Elliot groaned.

Danny and Brandon walked behind Elliot and place their hands on his shoulder.

"Elliot, we're only teasing you. You need to relax a little," Danny told him. "If you meet with your uncle and decide you don't want to go, then we'll fight it out in the court, if we have to. We won't give up easily."

"Really? You promise?" Elliot asked.

He was looking hopeful for the first time since hearing about his uncle's letter.

"Absolutely. You have to remember there's a lot more people on your side, not just Brandon and me," Danny assured him. "You also have your grandfather, Papa Jake, Uncle Steve and Aunt Sally too. We'll do everything we can to keep you here, if that's what you want."

After hearing this, Elliot gave each of them a hug, but this time he held on just a little longer than usual.

The timing of this unexpected visit couldn't be worse. Mr. Hagen would be showing up the weekend before Thanksgiving, which would throw a monkey wrench into a bunch of other things we had to attend to. Now, we'd have to fit in a visit from our Danish sailor and we weren't even sure how long he'd be staying.

I was just hoping his appearance wouldn't ruin our holiday. If Mr. Hagen decides he wants to try to take Elliot back with him, it would put a serious damper on our holiday spirit. With so many other family members coming home we can't just cancel our plans. We are committed to it. I'd hate to spoil the holiday for them, so this is quite a dilemma.

There were just two days until Mr. Hagen arrived and everyone was walking around the house like they were stepping on eggshells. No one wanted to say anything about it, but it was the dark cloud looming over our heads and basically the only thing on anyone's mind. The closer we got to his arrival time, the tenser the situation became. We all felt like over-stretched rubber bands, ready to snap at any second.

Elliot was a bundle of nerves and emotions. Even though Danny and Brandon had promised they'd fight to keep him here, he was still afraid something would go wrong and he'd end up spending the rest of his teenage years in Copenhagen. He started spending a lot of time by himself. The stress had shaken him to the core. He even feared that if we asked him about his feelings, he wouldn't be able to hold back his pent up emotions and would breakdown.

Seeing how Elliot was reacting, Jesse offered to have Elliot sleep with him the final two nights before his uncle arrived. He hoped that might offer him some comfort. After some coaxing, Elliot agreed, but Jesse wondered if it did much good. He said Elliot tossed and turned throughout the night. He was also moaning, and we suspected that was the result of bad dreams he was having. Jesse didn't get much sleep, but he was just as determined as the rest of us to not turn his back on Elliot in his time of need.

It was torture for each of us as the final few hours, and then the final few minutes counted down. How this would end, none of us knew for certain.

Soren Hagan was very punctual and arrived right on schedule – Friday evening, just as he told us. He was a fairly tall man, with a slender build, and looked quite distinguished. Although he didn't appear to be extremely muscular, I doubt anyone would have dared to refer to him as being wimpy. He looked to be in good shape, with a toned body, which was quite remarkable, especially if you considered he wasn't exactly young. I would venture to guess that he would be able to handle himself in a physical confrontation, if need be. He was also impressively attired in his dress uniform and radiated an intimidating stature. It seemed as though this was going to be a very interesting encounter.

Mr. Hagen was also carrying a few items with him, tucked under his arm, and we were certain we would eventually find out what was in them. When he spoke, it was difficult not to notice his accent, but he was still fairly easy to understand. It was also quite apparent that Mr. Hagen was used to being listened to and obeyed, which was a bit unnerving. After meeting him, we were now wondering how Elliot was going to respond to his commanding presence.

Danny and Brandon had arranged their schedules so they were home for his initial visit. Shortly after he arrived, they took Mr. Hagen to the family room, where they could discuss things in private. Danny and Brandon chatted with him for about thirty minutes, before they went to get Elliot, so he could join them.

It appeared as if Elliot was a bit overwhelmed and awestruck, as he approached this tall man in the impeccably maintained uniform. Elliot also seemed daunted by his uncle's commanding presence, even though Mr. Hagen greeted him warmly and even offered Elliot his hand. After they shook, Mr. Hagen told Elliot to call him Uncle Soren, and after a brief delay, Elliot eventually agreed.

After the uncle and nephew got acquainted, Danny and Brandon explained to Elliot that they were going to leave him and his uncle alone for a while, so they could get to know each other better. They assured Elliot they would just be in the other room, in case he needed anything, which made Elliot feel better about being alone with this stranger. He was still extremely nervous, but no longer frightened.

After they explained things to him, Brandon and Danny exited the family room and shut the door behind them. All they would tell me about their time alone with Mr. Hagen was that they were questioning him about his intentions and what he hoped to accomplish today.

"Elliot, I am very sorry about what happened to your father," Uncle Soren began, "but as I am your closest living relative, I would like for you to come live with me."

This comment caused Elliot's body to flash an immediate reaction, which appeared to be mostly reluctance and concern. His eye bulged open, his body stiffened and his fists clenched, which were clear indications this was not a suggestion he was ready to entertain. Noticing this, his Uncle Soren felt he should offer a few more details to clarify his proposal.

"I've brought some photographs with me, so I could show you more about my country. I also have other portraits, so you'll also be able to see some of the other members of your family," Uncle Soren explained. "I felt this would help you to better appreciate what it is like in Denmark and let you see what my wife and children look like."

After saying this, Uncle Soren opened one of the large envelopes he had brought with him.

"This photograph shows me with the Queen of Denmark and her husband, the Prince Consort," he explained. "It was taken at a military banquet we both attended. I was allowed to have this photograph taken with the Royal Couple, because I am a distant relative of the Queen, as are you."

Uncle Soren looked at Elliot closely, so he could gauge his reaction to this comment.

"Oh, don't start thinking you're in line to become King or that we will be going to play tennis or croquet at the palace," Uncle Soren joked. "There are hundreds of relatives in line between us and the throne, but we can still trace our family line back to her."

Elliot may have been a bit disappointed by this clarification, but he didn't make a big deal over it. He didn't know much about his mother's country, but the idea of being related to the royal family appealed to his sense of history.

"Are you a general?" Elliot asked, a bit timidly.

"My rank is on the same level as that of a general," Uncle Soren explained, "but in the navy I am referred to as an admiral."

It seemed that Elliot understood the gist of his comment, even if he didn't comprehend it fully. For nearly an hour, Uncle Soren showed Elliot a large collection of photos of his homeland and explained what each one represented. He also showed Elliot various snapshots of his family and identified who they were and how they were related, as well as sharing a few more intimate details about each person. Once they'd finished doing this, Uncle Soren noticed the piano and began to speak.

"That's a very nice piano," he stated. "I remember your mother used to play quite well." Elliot smiled.

"That's why my dad had me start taking lessons," Elliot announced. "He thought I might have her talent."

"And do you?" Uncle Soren followed.

"You tell me," Elliot countered, as he made his way to the keyboard.

He sat down and played two classical pieces and then turned toward his uncle. He hadn't tried to pull the same stunt on him, that he had on the family, and played each piece flawlessly. Uncle Soren was obviously impressed.

"That was very lovely," he told his nephew. "You have indeed been blessed with your mother's gift."

"Thank you," Elliot responded, while beaming inside.

"We have an excellent National Symphony," Uncle Soren announced, since he now knew about Elliot's ability. "Your aunt and I love to attend their concerts. Maybe you would like to join us on one of these occasions or you might even play with them some day."

Even though Elliot had an appreciation for classical music and enjoyed playing it, the idea of relocating to Denmark just so he could go to the symphony with his aunt and uncle seemed a bit ludicrous and hasty. He merely smiled at the suggestion, but didn't say anything, so his Uncle began speaking again.

"I want you to understand that we also have very good sports programs in Denmark," Uncle Soren urged. "It seems our schools take sports more seriously than here in the States, so I am certain we could find you an excellent diving coach, possibly even one who has competed in the Olympics."

"That does sound very nice," Elliot responded.

It was obvious that Elliot had only said this to be polite. As he sat there smiling, he was also trying to dig down deep, to find the courage he would need to say what was on his mind. After a few moments, he finally got up the nerve to speak.

"It all sounds very nice, but I still don't want to move there," Elliot replied, much to his Uncle Soren's dismay.

After this comment, they sat speechless for a minute or so, before Uncle Soren spoke again.

"Your Aunt Gretta and my children would love to have you with us," Uncle Soren pressed forward, breaking the silence. "Our family has very deep feelings for each other."

"But you said your children are grown and don't live close by and you also told me that Aunt Gretta doesn't speak English," Elliot objected. "How will I get along when you're not there? She won't be able to help me and I'll be completely alone and bored, because I won't know what's going on."

"Yes, it is unfortunate that your Aunt Gretta does not speak English, but she does know French and German," Uncle Soren suggested, as possible alternatives to relieve the situation. "Do you speak either of those languages?"

"No, I only speak English, although I have learned a little Spanish in school," Elliot admitted.

"That's too bad and it is a pity my children are living on their own now and are not close by, since they speak English too," Uncle Soren added, with a tinge or regret in his voice. "However, I am positive you will learn Danish quite quickly and things will not be so hard for you."

"I'm not so sure about that," Elliot mused.

"You will discover it will not be so bad living in Denmark, once you are there," Uncle Soren urged. "Many of the children you will meet at your school will also speak English and I'm sure they will be able to understand you and you them. This will allow you to make friends while you are also learning to speak Danish, so you will not feel so lonely."

"I appreciate that you want to help me and all," Elliot responded, after a few seconds, "but I really don't want to live in Denmark. I wouldn't mind visiting there some time, but I don't want to live there."

"It is a very nice place and I am sure you will grow to like living there," Uncle Soren assured him.

"I really don't think that will happen," Elliot replied. "From what you've told me, it's totally different than what I'm used to. I'd have to learn a whole different language and get used to a new way of doing everything, besides trying to make new friends. If you don't mind, I think I'd rather stay here."

"So you would prefer to live with strangers," Uncle Soren asked, somewhat bewildered.

"They were strangers when I first came here, but they're not strangers any longer," Elliot explained. "They've been very good to me and have helped a lot. They were there for me right after everything happened and comforted me when I had those terrible nightmares. They took care of arranging for my father's funeral and even took me back to my old house, so I could get what I wanted to bring here with me. They've even promised to go with me to the trial, since I want to be there when those men go to court. I'm sorry Uncle Soren, but they aren't strangers to me now. They are my family."

"And you do not mind having two fathers and no mother?" Uncle Soren wanted to know next.

"This may sound bad, and maybe even cruel, but I've never had a mother," Elliot offered. "You know my mother died when I was born, so I never got to know her and wasn't able to spend any time with her. That's why I don't feel like it's any different living here, except now I have two dads, instead of just one. They've both been very good to me. They have helped me get through some really rough times and I feel very close to them now. That's why I really want to stay here with them."

Uncle Soren merely stared at Elliot and didn't immediately respond. After a few seconds, he finally spoke again.

"Do they have good jobs and will they be able to provide you with the things you need?" Uncle Soren pressed.

"Yes, they do," Elliot confirmed. "Danny is a doctor and Brandon is a dentist, so I'd say they have great jobs. Besides, it looks like my dad made a lot of arrangements for my future in his will, so I'm sure I'll be fine."

Uncle Soren considered Elliot's words briefly, before he spoke again.

"But are you happy living here?" Soren asked. "Very happy?"

"Yes, Uncle Soren. I'm very happy. If I wasn't, I wouldn't want to stay so badly," Elliot stated. "I've got two dads, two grandfathers and tons of uncles. I haven't met them all yet, but I'm going to meet them soon and they've all been really nice to me so far. I don't think I could have found a better place to live."

Uncle Soren wasn't sure he completely understood how Elliot could be so happy living with a bunch of people he wasn't related to, but he could tell his nephew was being sincere. Since he felt Elliot was being honest with him, he did not argue the point further.

Once they finished their private discussion, we invited Soren to stay and have dinner with the family. We felt this would give him a chance to get to know us better and it might help him understand Elliot's feelings about living here. On the way to the dining room, Danny and Brandon introduced him to the other family members that were still living at home and explained who each of them was. They also told him how our family came together, but didn't bore him with the stories of those who weren't here. They even gave Soren a chance to speak with everyone, so he could get to know them a little better. These discussions continued while we ate, and by the end of the meal it appeared as if Soren could see some of the bonds Elliot had formed with us.

After dinner, Soren spent a little more time chatting with Danny and Brandon. During this time, he discussed Elliot's stance about wanting to stay with them and asked how they felt about having Elliot live with them. Danny and Brandon strongly, and unequivocally, let him know they were fine with Elliot's decision and were thrilled to have Elliot as their son.

After Soren asked each of them a myriad of other questions about themselves, the family and their views on a variety of subjects, he began to soften a bit. Since it was starting to get late, Soren asked if he might be able to return the next day, so he could take Elliot out for a while, just the two of them. Considering Elliot didn't have to go to school, since tomorrow was Saturday, Danny and Brandon agreed. However, they also made it very clear they would allow this only under certain conditions.

Danny and Brandon explained they would expect Elliot to be returned home by 6:00 that evening and asked Mr. Hagen to call if anything out of the ordinary arose during their time together. They told him that if he failed to comply, they would notify the authorities that Elliot had been abducted and press charges against him. Mr. Hagen confirmed the conditions met with his approval and he would abide by them. Having reached this arrangement, Danny and Brandon called Elliot back into the room. They then left the pair alone again, so Uncle Soren could ask Elliot if he was interested in spending tomorrow with him, so they could do something special.

"Elliot, I would still like for us to spend some more time together, so we can get further acquainted," Uncle Soren explained. "Since it is getting late, I have another idea you might like. I made some inquiries when I first arrived and discovered I can rent a small plane for an hour or two. Since I am a pilot, I thought I could take you out and possibly give you a flying lesson. Would you like that?"

"That sounds really cool and I think it would be a lot of fun, Uncle Soren," Elliot agreed. "I'd really like to do that, if that's what you'd like to do too."

Elliot and his uncle quickly discussed what Elliot should wear and bring with him, and then they set up a time to meet the next day. Elliot was extremely excited about the possibility of learning how to fly and quickly asked Danny and Brandon if it would be all right with them.

"Can I go with Uncle Soren to do this?" he asked, excitedly.

He was unconsciously hoping from one foot to the other, almost as if he had to pee.

"Your uncle already asked permission from us first, so you MAY go," Danny agreed, while correcting Elliot's grammatical error.

I was glad to see Danny had picked something up from me and Elliot was beside himself with excitement.

"Brandon and I have told your uncle that he may take you," Danny continued, "but we also let him know that he is to bring you back home by 6:00."

"Thank you. Thank you so much," Elliot gushed, while continuing to hop excitedly in place.

We told Soren he was also welcome to stay with us while he was here, but he explained he had already made a reservation and had checked into a motel, before coming to our house. We told him we were sorry we hadn't thought of it sooner, but he insisted he was fine and it was not a problem. However, he did thank us for our kind offer.

Now that everything was settled, Elliot said good-bye to his uncle and walked him out to his rental car. Once his uncle had driven off, Elliot bolted back in to the house and ran to tell Jesse.

"Uncle Soren is going to take me for a flying lesson tomorrow," Elliot announced, grinning from ear to ear. "It sounds really awesome and I'm sooooo excited!"

"You're so lucky and I'd be excited too," Jesse confirmed. "I wish I could go with you and learn how to fly a plane."

"I'll ask Uncle Soren when he gets here in the morning," Elliot suggested, and he meant it.

"No, this is for you to do with your uncle," Jesse replied, slightly disappointed. "Maybe I'll get to do it another time. I sure hope so."

It was good to see. Elliot was looking forward to this outing with his uncle and we were glad he was so happy. I had been a little skeptical and wondered if Elliot would agree to do anything alone with his uncle, while Soren was here. I was afraid Elliot might try to insist that at least one of us go with him, but now I was thankful that had not happened.

Since he was so excited, we weren't sure how much sleep Elliot got that night. We discovered later that he slept with Jesse again, and he was still smiling broadly and hopping around joyfully the next morning. Elliot was barely able to stand the wait until his uncle arrived, so when Soren finally showed up, Elliot was eager to get going. Elliot bolted out the door even before Soren had a chance to get out of his rental vehicle, but Soren made him come back inside. He wanted to speak with us first, before they took off.

After reiterating his pledge to abide by the terms of their agreement, Soren and Elliot went outside and hopped in the car. Then, Uncle Soren drove them to the small airport where he had made tentative arrangements after he first arrived. He signed a contract and paid the appropriate fee to rent a small, two-seat prop plane for this occasion. He had already provided the owner with proof that he was an experienced pilot for both planes and helicopters, so Elliot and he were able to go out and board the plane. Once they were seated inside the craft, Soren gave his nephew a few, brief safety instructions, and then radioed the tower for permission to take off.

The plane had identical controls on both sides of the cockpit, and once they were airborne, Uncle Soren explained to Elliot what he would need to do to take over flying the plane. Uncle Soren then let Elliot try his hand at piloting it solo for a while and Elliot loved every second of it. Even though Elliot wasn't sure if he was in complete control of the plane, he didn't let that small detail bother him. He was having fun and believed he was in control of where they were going, so he definitely felt as free as a bird and forgot about nearly everything else.

They soared above the ground in the plane for many minutes and Elliot was actually doing a fairly good job at the controls. At least, that's what his Uncle Soren told us later. Elliot was having a blast flying over the houses, barns and other buildings, as well as enjoying the view when looking down at them. He also got a kick out of seeing the cows, horses, pigs, chickens and other animals roaming along the ground, as he soared above them. Although it was quiet windy and he had to fight against the gusts as they buffeted the plane, it was a truly exhilarating and memorable experience.

After his uncle landed the plane, Elliot thanked his Uncle Soren and told him what a great time he'd had. Then they got back into the rental car and began the trip back.

"Since you have been so nice to me," Elliot told his uncle on the ride home, "I'd like to show you more of where I'm living now."

"I would like that very much," Uncle Soren confirmed.

Once they reached the outskirts of our little community, Elliot proceeded to give his uncle directions as to where he should go. Elliot took his uncle around and pointed out many of the local places that were already important to him. He showed Uncle Soren around the downtown area, as well as some of the places he liked to hang out with Jesse or his fathers. Then, he took his uncle over to see the school he was now attending.

Elliot was more upbeat and talkative now, than he had been when his uncle first arrived. It seemed as if the brief flying lesson had been successful in forming a bond between them and Elliot had enjoyed the time he had spent with his Uncle Soren. This didn't mean that Elliot was ready to agree to go live with him, but it appeared now that they would part on friendly terms and Elliot might even agree to go to Demark and visit his family sometime in the future.

Their time together was also good for Uncle Soren. He was able to see that Elliot was a happy and fairly well adjusted boy who did like living with us. Since Soren still wasn't certain he understood this connection, he felt he would give it one final attempt to see if Elliot had changed his mind.

"Do you still feel that you prefer to stay here, where you are living now?" Uncle Soren asked.

"I do, Uncle Soren," Elliot replied. "I've had fun with you and would love to come see you in Denmark when I'm a little older, but I really do want to stay where I am now."

"If you are happy and this is what you desire," his Uncle responded, "then I will honor your wishes. You are old enough to be able to decide this for yourself, so I will not try to influence you further or force you to change your mind."

Elliot beamed when he heard his uncle say this.

"Thank you, Uncle Soren. That means a lot to me," Elliot assured him, as they began the final leg of their journey.

When they reached the house, Soren came inside and listened as Elliot told us about his day. Then we invited Soren to join us for dinner again, but this time we were going to take him out to our favorite restaurant. At first he was reticent to do this, since he didn't want us to incur the expense, but we convinced him it would not be a hardship, so he finally gave in.

We had a wonderful meal and Elliot made sure he was seated between his Uncle Soren and his two fathers. It was really cute watching him talk to one, and then the other. Elliot took turns telling Danny and Brandon more about his day and his uncle more about his life, both before and with us, plus what happened when his father was murdered. I think that part of his tale shocked Soren, but he was grateful that Elliot had survived and recuperated so well, after experiencing such a traumatic event.

During the meal, Soren also explained that he had reached an understanding with Elliot and would no longer seek custody. He stated that he could see Elliot was happy, well taken care of and loved, so he was satisfied that his nephew would be fine remaining in our care. We thanked him for his confidence and for deciding in our favor, and then Soren explained that he only did this because it was what Elliot wanted and he thought it would be in his nephew's best interest.

After we finished eating, we drove back to the house and I invited Soren in for coffee or an after dinner drink. He chose the later, so we adults enjoyed a drink together, while the younger ones enjoyed a soda.

Before he left, we invited Soren to come back the following day, since he wasn't scheduled to leave until Monday. He very happily accepted our offer, so we asked him if he'd like to go to church with us or meet us after the service was over.

"I doubt your service will be similar to anything that I'm used to," Uncle Soren began, "but I would love to join you and partake in this new experience."

Since he was agreeable, we told him what time to come back in the morning and then bid him goodnight. He then drove to the motel he was staying at, to get a little rest.

The next morning, we were just finishing getting ready for church when Uncle Soren pulled in. He came inside for a couple of minutes and then rode with us to the church. It was a short, yet stimulating sermon, and Soren said he enjoyed the experience, once the service ended.

We then took him out for brunch with us afterward. It actually worked out quite well, since he said he was up and had eaten breakfast by 6:00 a.m. I don't think Elliot could fathom why anyone would get up that early on the weekend.

From there, we returned to the house and discussed several more items with Soren, including the upcoming trial. Soren wanted to know more about the men who had murdered Elliot's father and why they had done such a thing. He also wondered what the severity of their sentences would be, once they were convicted. I could only answer his queries in very general terms, since we didn't know the exact charges or the types of evidence the police were able to gather against them. We gave Soren our best guess about what might happen, so I hope we came close to what will eventually take place.

Jake and Soren also hit it off fairly well and Jake told him about his situation and son. It was obvious Soren didn't understand how we'd both been married and then ended up together, but he was very non-judgmental and willing to acknowledge that we loved each other and were a committed couple. Apparently Denmark is a bit more progressive than America, in terms of same sex relationships.

We invited Soren to have dinner with us again, but this time we were fixing the meal ourselves. We had planned a ham dinner for the occasion and Soren was happy to break bread with us again. By the time Soren was ready to depart for the final time, he very eloquently summed up his stay.

"I know my wife and children will be disappointed and have a difficult time understanding why I decided to honor Elliot's wishes to live here with you," Soren announced, "but I am convinced it is the right thing to do. I will keep in contact, to see how he is doing and will gladly arrange for him to visit us sometime in the future, if he is willing. Thank you very much for taking such fine care of him and for giving him a loving home."

Danny and Brandon thanked him in return and wished him a safe journey back to Denmark. Soren then said his final good-bye to his nephew.

"Elliot, I must be going now, but I am very glad that I finally got to meet you, although I wish it had been under better circumstances," Soren began. "I would be happy if you were returning with me, but I understand your desire to remain here and I am at peace with your decision. I do, however, still look forward to you visiting my family in the near future."

He then hugged Elliot, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a sheet of paper.

"This has all the information you will need to contact me," Soren explained, as he handed Elliot the paper. "It has my home address and telephone number, so I hope you will keep in touch with me. Please let me know immediately if you change your mind and wish to come live with us or even if it's just for a visit. We will welcome you either way."

"Thank you, Uncle Soren, and I will write and call. I promise," Elliot agreed. "I'd like to come visit you in Copenhagen someday. Maybe you can introduce me to the Queen," he added, with a wink.

Uncle Soren laughed at his nephew's joke.

"You will be welcome whenever you decide to come," Soren agreed, and then they said their final farewell, before Soren got back into his rental vehicle and started the engine. Once he'd pulled out of the driveway and headed away from the house, Elliot turned and spoke to Danny and Brandon.

"He is very nice and I like him a lot, but I told him I didn't want to live with him," Elliot explained. "I told him I liked it here and wanted to stay with you. I hope that was all right."

"It is more than all right and what we wanted to happen too," Danny explained. "Now, let's go inside and see what we want to do for the rest of the evening."

Having heard him say this, Elliot hugged both Danny and Brandon, before joining them in the family room for a little quality time together.

The family began to arrive for Thanksgiving on Wednesday afternoon and everyone was in high spirits and happy to be home. We greeted them as they entered and then introduced each person to Elliot.

I think he was quickly overwhelmed with the number of people arriving and I noticed he was mixing up most if their names. No one got bent out of shape by this, they merely corrected his mistake and commiserated about how daunting the task was. He was repeatedly assured they knew it would take him a while before he could keep everyone straight and shouldn't worry if he got it wrong for a while. Their calm and easy manner helped Elliot feel better about his difficulty, but that wasn't all they did to make him feel better. Throughout the day, each of those returning gave Elliot plenty of attention and spent time trying to learn more about him.

Fortunately for Elliot's short-term memory, not everyone was going to be here for the holiday. My older children and grandchildren weren't coming for this celebration, because this year they were spending the holiday with their in-laws. This was expected, so I wasn't bothered that they weren't going to be attending. Besides, they had gone with us on vacation just a few months earlier and were also going to be joining us for Christmas.

As everyone arrived, we tried to get each one settled in as quickly as we could. With so many coming home having room assignments prepared in advance is the key to having a successful holiday. First, we tried to free up as much space as possible, so with that in mind, Jesse asked Elliot if he could stay with him while the others were here. Jesse figured this would be better than asking Elliot to join him, because he thought Elliot wouldn't want to give up his bed, since he hadn't been able to enjoy it for very long. Elliot quickly accepted Jesse's offer, freeing up another room.

I was caught off-guard when I learned about this arrangement. Up until now, Jesse and Andrew were the ones who had always shared a room. I was surprised that Jesse was so willing to change this commitment, but it didn't seem to bother Andrew. Once he discovered Jesse and Elliot were going to share a room, he agreed to bunk with his biological brother, Sammy, while he was home.

However, that wasn't my only surprise. Since Cole and Dustin had their own places, a couple of the boys opted to stay with them, rather than at the house with the rest of us. Although Dustin and Cole each had a girlfriend, they also had a spare bedroom, so Graham stayed with his biological brother, Cole, and Pat decided to stay at Dustin's place. They both said they were doing this to free up more space at the house for others and I appreciated their effort. Still, it won't be quite the same without everyone under the same roof. The times they are a changing.

Frankie was also bringing his girlfriend with him, but because of his work schedule, they would arrive on Wednesday, but wouldn't stay as long as the others. They would have to leave on Friday morning, so Frankie would be back in time for his shift. It wasn't going to be perfect, but it was nice that he was going to be here with us, at least for a while.

Nick and Shannon will also be flying in from Atlanta, even though they had just been here to help me celebrate my birthday. Jake was thrilled we would be seeing them, even if it meant they would be spending Christmas with the Lawrences this year. In reality, Jake was planning to fly to Oklahoma and spend that holiday with them there. In that same vein, the Lawrences were going to be joining us for Thanksgiving, so they could spend a little more time with their son and his partner as well. I had reserved the guestroom for the Lawrences to use while they were here and Nick and Shannon would use their old room.

In addition to the Lawrences, the O'Haras would also be joining us for the holiday. They had originally planned to fly here to see Brandon and Danny, but now they were also going to get to meet their new grandson, Elliot. Although he is technically only their foster grandson at the moment, if Brandon and Danny get their way, they will eventually adopt him and Elliot will become their legal grandson.

When Elliot learned Brandon's parents were coming, he insisted that I put the O'Haras in his bedroom. He said Jesse and he would share Jesse's room instead. I think he felt this would give his new grandparents a chance to better appreciate his situation and maybe even ingratiate him, for allowing them to use his room.

After discussing Elliot's offer over with Danny and Brandon, they both thought it was a good idea and a sweet gesture on Elliot's part. With that in mind, Brandon said that he would make certain his parents understood this was totally Elliot's idea and his welcome gift to them. It should help to give Elliot a leg up and put a positive spin on his inclusion into their family.

This left only Ricky and Little Ricky, who had decided to bunk in with each other. Little Ricky didn't idolize Ricky to the same extent that he had in the past, but they were still very close and spent time together whenever they could. I was glad to see this bond had endured.

Once we got everyone settled in, they came back down and spent time with us. We began chatting with them and trying to catch up on what they'd been up to since we'd last seen them. Although we had been in touch with most of them during the interim, it was nice to have our memories refreshed. Besides, the boys have a way of making most of their experiences sound humorous, so we enjoyed many laughs as we listened to what they'd been up to.

The O'Haras were the last to arrive and Brandon greeted his parents at the door. He kissed his mother, shook his father's hand and then called Danny over to do the same. Then they took Brandon's parents into the rec room, where they knew they would find Elliot hanging out with Jesse. Brandon called Elliot over and introduced him to his parents.

"Elliot, this is my mother and father, your new grandparents," he began, as Elliot gave them the once over.

"Mom and Dad, this is your grandson, Elliot," he added, proudly.

Elliot reached out to shake Brenda's hand, but she stepped forward and embraced him tightly against her bosom.

"Welcome to the family sweetheart," she gushed, as she squeezed him, energetically.

After she released him, her husband shook Elliot's hand, but then pulled him in close, so he could give him a squeeze too. He also welcomed Elliot into the family.

"He's such a handsome little fellow and what beautiful eyes," Mrs. O'Hara told Brandon. "I think he's a keeper," she teased.

Brandon knew his mother would have preferred for him to start out with a younger child, maybe even a baby, but she didn't show any signs of disappointment. Brandon knew his mother would still be very good with Elliot and welcome him into the family with open arms, although he was fairly certain she would have liked to have known Elliot when he was younger.

Elliot blushed at this affectionate greeting. I've noticed he's generally shy around strangers, until he's had a chance to warm up to them. The smile on his face, however, suggested he liked the idea of having another set of grandparents and I suspect he'll warm up to them quickly. I predict this visit will go extremely well.

Now that everyone was here, Jake and I took the entire group out to eat, to save us from having to fix so many big meals during their visit. I had reserved one of the smaller banquet rooms at our favorite restaurant and we had to drive several vehicles, as we made our way there to dine. Elliot was somewhat overwhelmed by the size of this gathering, so I can't wait to see his reaction tomorrow, when the extended family shows up to join this crew.

Once we returned home, everyone went off to do his own thing. I guess it might have been wise if we'd spent more time preparing Elliot for this experience and warned him to be careful of trusting some of his uncles. It wasn't as if they would be mean or hurt him in any way, but he might become the target of some of their jokes and pranks, as they initiate him into the family.

Elliot had just grabbed a drink and was headed for Jesse's room when he had his first run in with their friskiness and jocularity. It happened almost as soon as they were out of earshot of the rest of us.

"Jesse, what's up with this?" Andrew teased. "I go off to college and you replace me as your best friend?"

Elliot looked apprehensive and was beginning to think he had done something terribly wrong. He knew Andrew was referring to him and suddenly remembered that Jesse told him he started speaking again when his new brother, and best friend, Andrew got hurt. Elliot didn't want to cause a problem for anyone.

"No, bro, you're still my best bud," Jesse assured him, "but Elliot's my good buddy too. Right Elliot?"

"Um… yeah… Jesse and I have become good friends," Elliot stammered, "but I don't want to cause any problems. If you want to stay with him while you're here, I can sleep in the room you were going to be in. Or I could even go downstairs and sleep on one of the sofas."

Suddenly, Andrew felt bad and looked slightly worried that he had just hurt Elliot's feelings.

"No, you're okay," Andrew assured him. "I was only teasing. Jesse and I will always be best friends, but we're close to most of our other brothers too. I just want to make sure we also become close to you. You've got to learn not to take things so seriously while you're living here, or you're going to have your feelings hurt a lot. We like to joke around and pick on each other, so you'd better start getting used to that."

Andrew laughed after saying this and Elliot looked somewhat relieved. Now, he turned to Jesse, hoping to get more clarification.

"Elliot, these guys like to joke around and have fun, so don't take anything they say too seriously," Jesse advised him. "I had some trouble with it at first too, but you'll soon learn to do the same thing to them, instead of just taking it."

Elliot took it in stride. It reminded him of his first few weeks at boarding school. You just needed to go with the flow.

"So, are you guys messing around yet?" Little Ricky asked next.

Jesse's eyes suddenly shot wide open, as he stared at Little Ricky. Elliot, on the other hand, had a questioning look on his face.

"Messing around?" Elliot repeated. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Before Jesse could say anything to stop him, Little Ricky continued.

"You know, jerking off or sucking each other?" Little Ricky clarified.

Elliot turned beet red and nearly choked, as he attempted to keep from spitting out his drink, when Little Ricky cleared this up.

"Uh, Elliot's had a lot to deal with since he got here," Jesse tried to explain, "so he's been spending most of his time dealing with his problems and concentrating on his schoolwork."

As he had been saying this, Jesse was giving Little Ricky a look that told him to shut his mouth and let this drop. The problem was, Elliot wanted to ask more questions.

"You guys really do that?" Elliot asked, just as soon as Jesse stopped talking. It was almost as if he hadn't heard Jesse's reply.

"Uh, well… only if the guys agree they want to um… do things like that with each other," Jesse explained. "Uh, nobody has to do that stuff though, so you don't have to um… worry that anyone is going to make you do it."

The fact that Jesse was stumbling over his words made it obvious that he was finding this topic difficult to discuss in front of Elliot. He hadn't talked about sex with him before, because he was worried about how Elliot might react. Even though he seemed okay with the gay relationships around him, Jesse wasn't sure how he'd react to being confronted with it personally. Elliot might respond the exact opposite of how he'd been up to this point, if he thought someone was trying to persuade him to do those things.

"Hmmm. What if I wanted to try something like that?" Elliot asked.

Little Ricky and Jesse weren't sure how to respond to his statement and it hadn't occurred to Jesse that Elliot might actually want to get involved. Little Ricky was also a little scared that he had just let the cat out of the bag and worried that I wasn't going to approve of Elliot knowing about what the boys do in private. He knew it was something he should have to run by me first.

"Um… have you done anything like that before?" Jesse asked.

"No, but I've thought about it," Elliot responded. "I'd heard rumors about it when I was at Ben Rush, but that's about it."

"Are you gay?" Little Ricky followed, more directly than he'd intended.

Jesse was glaring at Little Ricky now. He didn't want to scare Elliot off by using labels. Elliot hesitated briefly, but then he answered.

"Probably… maybe… I don't know," he responded. "I think it's possible, but I'm not really sure. I know I really want to try doing things with guys, but I've never had the chance. When I was at boarding school I saw other guys naked in the showers and stuff, and I liked looking at their bodies. I had to be careful about doing it though, because getting caught would have been like getting an invitation to a regular ass kicking. I always hoped I might find someone who wanted to experiment a little, but that never happened."

Now, it was Jesse's turn to be surprised. Elliot was eying him as if he were asking why he hadn't told him this before and Jesse was trying to come up with an adequate response that wouldn't upset his newest friend.

"I never knew you felt this way," Jesse told him. "I didn't think you'd be interested, so I never brought it up."

"I'm pretty good at hiding it, but I have checked you out a few times," Elliot admitted, with a blush. "I tried to see what you had when you were getting changed or getting ready to take your shower."

"Damn! If I'd known that, I wouldn't have tried to be so modest," Jesse laughed. "Normally, we don't care if the others see us naked. We even like to go around the house without any clothes on. We haven't done that since you came here though, because we were worried it might upset you."

"Oh, I'm not sure I could do that," Elliot confessed, "but I wouldn't mind being naked with a guy when we were, you know, together. I just don't think I could go naked in front of a bunch of other people. Besides, isn't that a little unsanitary."

That comment caused Jesse to put an arm around Elliot's shoulders and burst out laughing.

"What has it got to do with germs," Jesse teased. "I'll bet you'll change your mind, once you've been here for a while."

Elliot didn't think so. He couldn't picture himself ever being comfortable with strutting his stuff for the entire household to see. Now that this topic had been broached and discussed a bit, the boys came downstairs to join the rest of us.

"It's too dark to go outside and do anything, so does anyone have any ideas?" Ricky asked.

"I guess we could get some games going," Trey suggested. "Anyone up for that?"

"I've got it," Frankie told them, before anyone answered Trey. "How about a little nickel-dime poker?"

Quickly, several of the boys said they were in, so Frankie, his girlfriend, Dustin, Pat, Cole, Nick and Danny moved out to the rec room and started a game.

"What about the rest of you?" Ricky challenged. "Anyone else have an idea?"

"We have several Uno decks," Jesse offered.

"That sounds like fun," Elliot chimed in. "I'll play, if you do that."

Before long, Jesse, Elliot, Andrew, Sammy, Little Ricky and Graham sat down and began playing Uno in the dining room.

"Are any of the rest of you up for a little Trivial Pursuit?" Ricky wanted to know.

After talking it over, Ricky, Brandon, Shannon, Kevin, Vinnie and Trey were choosing partners and heading into the living room, so they could participate in this activity. Since they didn't feel they had enough, they came into the family room and dragged the O'Haras, Lawrences, Jake and me out to join them a few minutes later.

I noticed that while playing Uno, Elliot would listen to the trivia questions and absent-mindedly share the answer with the other boys at his table. I was glad that Brandon had teamed up with Kevin, rather than his son, because they would have given Jake and me a run for our money. The educator in me was impressed by the vast amount of knowledge Elliot seemed to have, particularly for a freshman. He has, on occasion, demonstrated an intelligence he attempts to keep hidden. I suspect he does this to fit in with his peers, because no kid ever wants to be tagged a geek or a nerd. I'm looking forward to seeing his first report card and I'll be surprised if it isn't all A's.

Our Trivial Pursuit game turned out to be a rousing, and highly competitive event, but Jake and I ended up winning and dazzling the others with our knowledge of minutia. Since we were finished, I got up and made a detour to the family room, before I walked back to the dining room.

"Okay, who won at Uno?" I asked.

My voice surprised a few of the boys and caused them to jump, because they hadn't seen me come in.

"Graham won a game and Little Ricky won the other," Jesse announced.

Seeing Elliot was busy chatting with the others he'd been playing the Uno game with, Jesse got up and followed me, as I headed toward the rec room to check on the poker game.

"Dad, I need to talk to you," he began.

"Okay, what's up?" I wondered.

"Little Ricky let it slip in front of Elliot that we did stuff," Jesse admitted. "I think Elliot is interested now, so I wanted to check with you first, in case Elliot says anything or asks if I'll do something with him."

He looked at me, waiting for my answer.

"I don't think there will be a problem with that," I advised him, "but you'll have to ask Danny and Brandon about this. Elliot is their responsibility, so they'll need to make the final decision."

He hadn't thought of that before, but realized I was correct. For that reason, Jesse followed me, as I went into the rec room.

"Okay, who's winning the poker game?" I asked, as we walked up behind the others.

"Frankie won the most and Dustin and Danny are the big losers," Cole informed us.

"It's okay," Nick chimed in. "They can afford to lose a few bucks."

"Hey, Danny, maybe Elliot will give you a loan," Brandon teased his partner.

The other poker players chuckled at their comments, but no one really lost or won very much. They had participated in the game primarily for the camaraderie and challenge.

While everyone was joking around, Jesse asked Danny if he could speak with him alone. He agreed and walked with him to the foyer.

"I think we should get Brandon too," Jesse urged.

Danny looked puzzled, but decided to do what Jesse wanted. He went and got Brandon and brought him back to the foyer, before they went upstairs for some privacy.

"Okay. What's up?" Danny asked, once they were all together.

Jesse quickly explained the situation to them and then asked what they thought. He told them this all came up by accident, but he had a feeling Elliot was going to ask him to do something eventually. Danny and Brandon discussed this situation briefly, before they gave Jesse their answer.

"As long as Elliot is the one suggesting it, then we feel it will be okay if you do something with him," Danny explained. "I don't think he's ready for anal yet, but the other stuff should be fine. We trust your judgment, since we know Dad trusted you with Jordan and Nicky."

Jesse blushed slightly, since he didn't think anyone else knew that he had messed around with his other nephews. I guess Danny and Brandon felt adding one more nephew to that list would be okay, as long as it was Elliot's idea. Jesse thanked them and went back down to the dining room, where Elliot and the others were still playing.

"Where have you been," Elliot asked, as Jesse walked back into the room.

"I had to go to the toilet," Jesse replied. "Why? Did you want to join me?"

The other boys chuckled and Elliot let the subject drop.

At bedtime, Elliot did exactly what Jesse was expecting. Rather than put on his PJs, he stripped down to his underwear instead. When he was ready to hop into bed, he mentioned his interest again. Then, he tried to see if he could get Jesse to help him participate in another new experience.

"I can't believe you never told me you did anything with your brothers," Elliot said.

"I wasn't sure you'd be interested in hearing about it or trying anything yourself," Jesse replied.

"Well, I am, so do you want to do something tonight?" Elliot asked, hopefully.

"What did you have in mind?" Jesse wondered.

"I don't know. Anything would be a change of pace for me," Elliot told him, but his response didn't give Jesse much information.

"Have you done anything before?" Jesse asked Elliot again.

"Well, I'm in a pretty serious relationship with my right hand, but that's about it," Elliot joked.

"HAHAHA. That's all right," Jesse laughed. "Would you like to jack each other off then?"

"Okay! That sounds good," Elliot agreed.

"Do you want me to do you first, or do you want to do me?" Jesse asked next.

"I've never touched anyone else's cock before and no one has ever touched mine either, at least not, you know, sexually," Elliot confessed.

"Okay, then I'll do you first, since you'll probably cum quickly," Jesse suggested, "and then you can do me."

Elliot didn't have a problem with his suggestion, so Jesse told him to pull his underwear down so he could get at his penis. Elliot was already hard, so it appeared that just thinking about doing this was enough to stimulate him. Seeing that, Jesse concluded this might not even take as long as he first thought. Jesse reached over to the nightstand and grabbed some lube, which he spread on his hand. Then he wrapped his fingers around Elliot's four-inch cut pole and began sliding his fist up and down the shaft.

Elliot began to moan immediately and his breathing became quick and shallow, almost like a pant. At the same time, his body began to squirm beneath Jesse's experienced grasp. Jesse had only pumped a few times on Elliot's dick when he began to notice Elliot's testicles were beginning to draw up closer to his body. That was another sign Elliot was very close. Jesse merely stroked him a few more times, and then Elliot gasped, his body tensed and drops of his pearly seed exploded from his cock. First one, then a second and finally a third spurt catapulted from his cock head, and then his body collapsed. He was now enjoying the wonderful feelings of afterglow that enveloped his body, as he recovered from his first boy-boy sex.

Jesse waited a minute and didn't speak, but once he saw Elliot begin to move about and come to life again, he confronted him.

"Did you enjoy it?" Jesse asked.

"Hell, yes!" Elliot replied. "It was great."

"I'm glad you liked it," Jesse told him. "Are you ready to do it to me now?"

"Totally," Elliot agreed, excitedly. Jesse quickly removed all of his clothes.

"Go ahead," Jesse urged. "I'm leaving it up to you to get me hard."

Tentatively, Elliot reached over and rested his hand on Jesse's warm belly. He stroked the soft flesh gently and then cautiously brought his hand down, until it touched Jesse's dick. Fortunately, Elliot was ambidextrous, except for writing, which allowed him to do this without too much difficulty, since his right wrist was in a cast. Elliot was very gentle as he touched Jesse's penis, which almost made it appear as if he was afraid he was going to break it. Carefully, he ran his fingers over Jesse's cock and testicles.

"Go ahead. It's not going to bite," Jesse teased, and Elliot cautiously wrapped his fingers around the expanding shaft.

"Damn, it's big," Elliot gasped.

Jesse's penis had now reached its maximum stature of 7.5 inches of fairly thick meat and Elliot's comment caused Jesse to giggle.

"It's a decent size. I'm pretty proud of it," he concurred, as Elliot began to slide his hand up and down on Jesse's sausage, "but you should see some of my brothers. They're even bigger yet."

Elliot couldn't even begin to imagine that.

"Here, use a little of this," Jesse advised him, while handing him the lube.

"What is it?" Elliot shot back.

"It's stuff to make your hand slippery," Jesse explained, "so it will slide over the skin easier. I used it on you. Didn't you notice?"

"I did, but I just didn't know what it was," Elliot admitted. "It did feel good though."

"Yeah, I know," Jesse confessed. "That's why I want you to use it on me."

Elliot stopped what he was doing and applied some of the substance to his hand. After spreading it around, he grabbed Jesse's cock again and began stroking it. He was amazed at how much better his fist slid over the surface.

Elliot continued to pound away at Jesse's dick and realized this was taking longer than it ever had taken him when he jerked off. He felt his fingers begin to cramp up slightly and the muscles in his arm were starting to burn.

"Are you almost ready to shoot?" he asked, as he looked up at Jesse's face.

"Yep, just about," Jesse agreed.

Elliot kept pumping, while hoping it wouldn't take much longer. Even though his hand and arm were hurting, Elliot wasn't about to give up. He wanted to give Jesse as much pleasure as Jesse had given him.

When Jesse finally arched his back off of the bed and let those creamy drops erupt from his penis, Elliot felt a sense of relief and accomplishment. Elliot kept stroking him until Jesse told him he could stop, and then he began rubbing his left arm as best as he could with his right hand, kneading his aching muscles.

"Well, did you like that too?" Jesse asked, a few seconds later.

"Yeah, I did," Elliot confirmed, "but that was a workout. My arm was getting tired."

"Oh, you'll get used to it after a while and that won't happen any more," Jesse explained, much to Elliot's relief.

He was beginning to think that maybe this wasn't such a good idea, if his arm was going to feel like this afterward. However, now that they had both gotten off, they cleaned up and went to sleep. Elliot was more than satisfied with his first experience and eagerly looking forward to doing it again.

Jake and I had prepared some of the food the night before, after the boys went upstairs, and then we got up at 4:00 and put the turkeys in the ovens – one in the oven in the stove and the other in the built-in wall oven. We had two huge birds and hoped it would be enough to feed the mob we were expecting.

Shortly after noon, the first of our extended family began to arrive. We wouldn't be eating until 2:00, but some of them came early, to see if they could help out. Jake and I were happy to accept any offer of assistance we received and everyone brought a dish to add to our feast.

I'm certain Elliot's head was spinning as Danny and Brandon took him around and introduced him to everyone. He had seen many of them at his father's funeral, but at the time nothing much was sinking in. Now, Danny and Brandon spent a few minutes talking to each individual, so Elliot could learn a little about them before moving on to the next person. Many of the extended family took this opportunity to once again offer their condolences about his father and express their sympathies over what he'd been through, before welcoming him to the family. It was quite a lengthy process and kept the three of them rather busy for quite some time.

While Danny and his little family made their rounds, I enlisted many of the other boys to put up the extra tables, so there would be enough space to accommodate everyone who had agreed to attend. Once Elliot saw how many places were set, he began to worry that we wouldn't have enough food to feed everyone. We all assured him there would be plenty and we wouldn't run out of anything, but he still looked dubious. I guess that's to be expected, especially for a first timer to one of our gatherings.

About a half hour before we were to sit down to eat, some of the boys gathered back in the rec room. I was too busy with the meal to keep track of what was going on, so I didn't learn about this until much later. Let's just say that Elliot was already beginning to become acquainted with some of his uncles.

"Elliot, I've got something for you," Ricky told him. "It's part of a family tradition."

Elliot looked curious, as he went to see what was contained in the bag Ricky was holding. Cautiously, he watched as Ricky brought out an object and held it in front of him.

"This is our Pilgrim's Collar," Ricky announced, while holding up a black leather dog collar with silver studs. "All new family members have to wear it the first time they celebrate Thanksgiving with us."

"You're kidding. Right?" Elliot responded, after listening to his uncle.

"No, this is a family tradition. Isn't that right, guys?" he asked, as he drew some of the others into his plan.

Unconvincingly, Cole, Graham, Little Ricky, Andrew and Jesse each nodded his head. Elliot still wasn't sure about this, but he didn't have much time to think about it before Ricky fastened the collar around his neck. He didn't want to get on anyone's bad side, especially since this was the first time he'd met most of them. Therefore, he went along with it for now.

"There's one other part to this tradition," Ricky continued, once the collar was fastened. After we've said grace and you've filled your dinner plate with what you want to eat, you have to get up from the table, set your plate on the floor and then eat your dinner on your hands and knees, like a dog."

"I'm not doing that. Now, I know you're joking," Elliot objected, while looking toward the others for confirmation.

"No, it's part of the tradition," Ricky insisted.

"Why would anyone have to do anything like that?" Elliot protested.

"It's to teach you humility and give you something to be thankful for when you celebrate Thanksgiving with us in the future," Ricky explained.

"I don't buy it!" Elliot exclaimed.

"Jesse, tell him you had to do it too," Ricky stated, while pulling Jesse deeper into his scheme.

"Um… yeah, I had to uh… do that too ah… the first Thanksgiving I was um… here," Jesse stammered.

Elliot still looked unconvinced.

"If you don't want to do it, that's fine," Ricky informed him, "but then everyone will treat you differently and you will never be a true member of our family."

After saying this, Ricky turned to leave, with the others following his lead, but they didn't get very far.

"You're really serious about this then?" Elliot asked, as he gradually began to believe what he was being told.

"Absolutely," Ricky confirmed. "We've all had to do it, but if you don't want to, that's up to you."

They all started to leave again, when Elliot stopped them a second time.

"Okay. I think it's stupid, but I'll do it," he agreed. "I really don't want to offend anyone, especially on Thanksgiving."

Having received his acceptance, the boys all congratulated Elliot for being such a good sport and told him he was doing the right thing. A few minutes later, they all came out and took their places at the table, because they'd been summoned for dinner.

As was typical on this day, we took turns telling what we were thankful for this year. Everyone had their own list of things they wanted to mention, but Danny, Brandon, Jake and I all added a statement saying that although we were saddened that Elliot had endured so many horrible things, we were thankful he had come to live with us. We were also grateful that he had decided to stay, even though he had discovered he had relatives who wanted him to come live with them.

As we made our way around the various tables, I noticed something and thought it a bit odd. Once the person who was speaking finished his comments, I interrupted, before the next person began to speak.

"Elliot, what is that you're wearing around your neck?" I inquired.

"It's the Pilgrim's collar," he answered, looking a bit apprehensive.

Since I had no idea what any of this meant, I decided to pursue it further.

"Is this some sort of family tradition you are bringing with you?" I followed.

After all, he had given it a seasonal sounding name.

"Um… I was told this was uh… one of your family tradition and I um… had to wear it today," Elliot responded.

Suddenly, we all began to hear a few snickers filling the air.

"Elliot, I think you've been had," I told him.

"Excuse me?" he said next.

"You've been fooled," I clarified. "Someone is playing a trick on you and I know precisely who that is. Ricky, would you explain this please."

"Hey! Why do I always get accused of everything that happens?" Ricky whined.

"Probably because you're usually involved," I replied. "Elliot, who told you to do this?" I asked, to clarify the situation.

"Um… he did," Elliot said, while pointing at Ricky.

I merely glared at my blond prankster.

"Hey, I didn't say I didn't do it," he pleaded. "I just wanted to know why I always get blamed."

"I think that's obvious." I answered. "You get blamed, because 99% of the time you are to blame."

"Oh, okay," he stated. "I just wanted to see what you'd say."

Everyone began to giggle.

"So I don't have to set my plate on the floor and eat my food like a dog?" Elliot asked next.

Mrs. O'Hara bristled when she heard this, but fortunately Brandon and her husband were seated on either side of her and kept her from making a scene. They knew I would handle it.

"No, Elliot. You do not have to do that," I informed him. "but I think I might have Ricky do it instead."

Everyone's turned and looked at Ricky and began to snicker.

"Elliot, I apologize for this," I continued. "It seems you've been hazed and initiated into the family by your wacky uncle. I guess we should have warned you to watch out for the pranks, although I thought they might give you an adjustment period before they started in on you."

Danny and Brandon got up and walked down to reassure Elliot that this had been done in fun and he should take it that way. However, they each smacked Ricky in the back of the head as they passed by.

'Hey! Watch it!" Ricky complained.

I don't think anyone was feeling any sympathy for him though.

Once Danny and Brandon had a chance to speak with Elliot, he began to grin and even laugh.

"I thought it was a joke, but when the others agreed that I should do it, I finally gave in," he said grinning. "You can make me look stupid all you want. I'm just glad I came here to live and you've all been so nice to me – well, everyone except Ricky," he said, good-naturedly.

After he made that comment, he stuck his tongue out at his devilish uncle. Now that this had been settled, we finished going around to the rest of the tables and allowed the others to say what they were thankful for. Then I announced it was time to get down to business.

The ladies were very helpful in assisting me with bringing the food out and placing it on the tables, while Jake and Steve carved up the two birds and stacked the meat on platters. The platters were then brought out and placed on the tables too. Then we said grace and began to pass around the food.

There was more than enough to go around and no one went hungry, as Elliot had feared. Once we finished eating, I pulled Elliot aside for a private chat, while some of the others were helping to clear off the tables. Once Elliot agreed to my proposal, I made an announcement.

"Would everyone please go to the family room for a few minutes," I urged. "I know it's going to be a little crowded, but there's something I'd like to share with you in there."

They did as I asked and I took Elliot with me. We stood by the piano and waited for the others to settle down.

"Since this is the first time most of you have met Elliot," I began, "I have talked him into sharing one of his talents with you. I believe you'll all be pleasantly surprised by it."

Having said that, I encouraged Elliot to sit down at the keyboard and begin playing. He played a classical piece first, and then selected a Christmas carol, in order to set the mood for our next big holiday.

Once he'd finished playing the Christmas carol, he began another song. A few chords into it, Dion asked him to stop and start over. When he did, Dion joined Elliot at the piano and sang the lyrics for us.

Sleep, my child, and peace attend thee All through the night Guardian angels God will send thee All through the night Soft the drowsy hours are creeping Hill and dale in slumber sleeping I my loving vigil keeping All through the night

While the moon her watch is keeping All through the night Will the weary world is sleeping All through the night O'er thy spirit gently stealing Visions of delight revealing Breathes a pure and holy feeling All through the night

Though I roam a minstrel lonely All through the night My true harp shall praise sing only All through the night Love's young dreams, alas, is over Yet my strains of love shall hover Near the presence of my lover All through the night

Hark a solemn bell is ringing Clear through the night Thou, my love, art heavenward winging Home through the night Earthly dust from off thee shaken Soul immortal shalt thou awaken With they last dim journey taken Home through the night.

I think they made a great team and I'm certain the others agreed with that assessment, judging by the delightful expressions on everyone's face. Once he finished playing, Elliot was congratulated by nearly all of the others and I could tell that he now felt as though he was accepted as an equal member of this wonderful group.

Slowly, the others began to make their way out of the room and they then went off in several different directions. Before Elliot disappeared though, I had one more thing to say to him.

"Elliot, if you're going out there, watch out for those guys and don't let them pull any other tricks on you," I advised him.

Elliot merely smiled and nodded his head, before disappearing with Jesse.

Some of the older crowd stayed in the family room, where we sat and talked. Just after I finished speaking to one of our guests, Kevin came up to me and asked if we could go somewhere to talk. I was surprised by this request and couldn't imagine what he wanted, but I agreed. We ended up going to my bedroom, which was one of the few places currently unoccupied.

"What's up?" I asked him, once we were alone.

"Dad, I know you aren't going to be happy when you hear this and it's why I waited until after we had finished dinner."

I looked at Kevin confused.

"Vinnie and I have found a first floor apartment and we can start moving in December 1st," he explained. "It's nearly halfway between where Vinnie and I work, but I will have a slightly longer drive than he does. That's fine and doesn't bother me, since I was worried about Vinnie making the drive every day, especially in the winter."

"Well, I knew this day was coming," I confessed. "Although I'm sorry we'll be losing you, I'm not upset. A parent raises his children knowing that one day they'll be moving out on their own. Have you told your Uncle Steve and Aunt Mary yet?"

"Vinnie's pulling them aside and telling them about our plans, while I'm in here telling you," he explained. I guess that made perfect sense.

Since Kevin had shared this information with me, and I had reacted better than he'd first assumed, he wasn't as surprised by my next statement. I offered to assist them when they moved. He thanked me for the offer and admitted they could use the help, since Vinnie wouldn't be able to do much, except for packing and unpacking. I was glad we had been able to work this out and get the matter settled.

While I had been with Kevin, some of the other boys had gone back to the rec room, where they were listening to music and chatting with each other. The rest of the boys had either gone up to their rooms to take a nap or were sitting down to play games at the tables where we'd just enjoyed our meal.

Elliot and Jesse were among the crowd in the rec room, so Elliot thought he'd get something cleared up while they were in there.

"You should have told me he was pulling a joke on me," Elliot said, matter-of-factly.

"I couldn't," Jesse replied. "Ricky said that if anyone messed it up, he'd do something far worse to us."

Elliot looked dismayed.

"Could he do that?" Elliot wondered.

"Oh, yeah," Jesse confirmed. "Ricky has lots of pranks he can pull on you. Some of them are funny, but others aren't. I didn't want to be on the receiving end of one of his pranks that isn't so funny."

"Interesting," Elliot remarked, contemplatively.

Since Jesse had told him he'd only gone along with this so something worse didn't happen to him, Elliot forgave him. However, Elliot knew he would have to be much more careful in the future and figured from now on if it sounded like a joke then it probably was.

About an hour and a half later, I had everyone gather back in the dining room, to have coffee and dessert. Well most of the boys didn't have coffee, but they did have dessert and a drink. We sat at the tables a while longer, as we chatted with others who hadn't been in the same room with us prior to returning to the dining room. Finally, I invited everyone to come back the following afternoon for leftovers, combined with a few new dishes.

When we grew tired of sitting there any longer, we got up and moved to more comfortable locations. Many of the extended family began to leave over the next couple of hours and return home. They all promised they'd be back the following day, as we said farewell to them. It had been a truly enjoyable and interesting day.

Elliot thought about asking Jesse to do something again, but he was just too tired. Even though he wanted to, he knew there would be plenty of other opportunities, so he just hopped into bed. He fell asleep nearly as soon as his head hit the pillow.

On Friday, the boys decided to go out and play their annual 'Currie Family Holiday Touch Football Game.' They also made sure to ask Elliot to play and included him in on the fun. Unfortunately, Frankie and his girlfriend had to leave and couldn't join them, but we understood he had to return home, because he was scheduled to work. Despite his loss, the game went on without him.

At first, Elliot seemed reticent to participate. He said he wasn't much use when it came to team sports, like football. However, the other boys wouldn't hear of him sitting out and said everyone had to participate. Elliot thought this might be another joke they were trying to play on him, so he asked me. I told him this was a family rule, so he relented and joined in the fun. Hey, it was only a little white lie. Seeing Mike Lawrence, Pat O'Hara, Uncle Steve, Jake and I got roped in to playing too, I wasn't about to give him a free pass.

It wasn't great football, but it was a wonderful experience and Elliot seemed to loosen up and have fun too, once he realized he wasn't the only one who lacked talent for the game. I actually thought he did fairly well playing end. He was fast and able to free himself up with some quick moves, except he dropped the first couple of passes thrown to him. Once the other boys gave him some tips on how to be more successful at catching the football, he made a few grabs that helped his team get out of a bind. I think he actually enjoyed himself and was even slightly proud of what he'd accomplished.

When the game ended and we came inside, everyone was laughing and joking around. They were teasing some of the others about their less than graceful plays, while also attempting to belittle some of the more extraordinary efforts some of them had managed to pull off. Once Elliot began to see how they interacted with each other, he started to relax and join in the fun. By this time, he was also feeling better about the little prank they had tried to pull on him the previous day.

This also gave the O'Haras a chance to sit down and chat with Elliot for a while, so they could learn a little more about him. Brandon had shared some information with his parents concerning Elliot's background, but this allowed them an opportunity to discover a little about his personal likes and dislikes too. The time they spent together went well and the O'Haras told Elliot more about themselves as well, so each side came away with a better understanding of the other.

A little later, some of the others began to return for leftovers. Actually, there weren't that many leftovers to go around, so Jake and I went to check on the items we had started to prepare before we went outside for the game. Since there wasn't much turkey left, we had prepared a couple of turkey rolls, which didn't take as long to cook. We then sliced them up and added the meat to the platter, so there was plenty for those who wanted to make a turkey sandwich or to just add a little turkey to their plate.

We sat down at the tables and began chatting while we were filling our plates. The subject of this morning's football game came up and Aunt Mary asked who won. This began a succession of stories about the game, since there was some disagreement over the final score. Before long, many members of our extended family were laughing hysterically at the conflicting and humorous stories they were being told.

After we finished eating, some of the boys went in to watch a college football game in the family room. It actually became quite crowded in there and bodies were strewn all over the place. If that weren't bad enough, the place erupted each time a big play occurred, as those rooting for the team making the play celebrated and those cheering for the other team grumbled.

Those who weren't interested in the game moved into the living room instead, so they could continue chatting. Jake and I were conversing with Susan and Alice, Mark and Jesse's mothers respectively, when Elliot approached us.

"I just thought I should say thank you, since you two fixed most of the food the last two days," he began, as he glanced between Jake and myself.

Then, he turned his attention solely to me.

"And thank you for yesterday, with Uncle Ricky. I didn't mind it that much, but it is nice to know that you are willing to stick up for me."

"Danny and Brandon might be your fathers, but we're your grandfathers," I told him, referring to Jake and myself, "and we won't let anyone do anything to hurt you."

"Thank you and that's nice to know," Elliot responded.

He then gave Jake and me a hug. I thought that was a very nice gesture on his part.

After the football game, which the boys were watching on television had ended, the extended family began to leave and return to their homes. When this happened, many of the boys headed upstairs to go to bed. Jake and I stayed behind, so we could speak with Mike and Julie Lawrence for a while longer, and then we all turned in too.

Once Jesse and Elliot got to their bedroom, Elliot quickly talked Jesse into repeating what they had done two nights before. They hadn't engaged in anything Thanksgiving evening, because the activities during the day and the big meal had completely tired them out.

This had been especially true for Elliot, because he had been through a lot for one day and had many other things on his mind, which kept him from thinking about any physical pleasure. His thoughts had been consumed by the prank Ricky had pulled on him and reminiscing about the comments he received after showing off his skills on the piano. His head was also still spinning from meeting all of the others, so this collection of thoughts had totally occupied his mind. Therefore, the idea of doing something sexual hadn't entered his thoughts, even though he had totally enjoyed his first experience.

Tonight, however, the boys quickly stripped out of their clothing and Jesse suggested he should do Elliot first again. Elliot eagerly agreed and settled in to enjoy what was about to happen to him. This time he was able to concentrate on each move Jesse made and every feeling he received from it. He reveled in how different it felt to have someone else do this for him, than when he did it for himself. When he thought about it, this made him enjoy what was happening even more.

Since Elliot was no longer a novice at this activity, he lasted a little longer this time, which allowed him to revel in the enjoyable feelings he was receiving from it. When he did explode, it was very similar to his previous experience, but he remembered more about it than he had on his previous encounter.

When he returned the favor, Elliot discovered that his arm still got sore and ached slightly, but he didn't think it happened as quickly or felt as badly as it had the first time he had done this. Maybe Jesse was right and he'd eventually become used to it, so his muscles wouldn't throb at all, but it really didn't matter. Elliot felt he could put up with a little discomfort, so he could relish the pleasure he got in return, from doing this with Jesse. He enjoyed it too much to allow a little discomfort to ruin his fun.

Once each of them had enjoyed an orgasm, they cleaned up and got ready to go to sleep. Since they were both so relaxed now, they fell asleep rather quickly. Sometime later, Jesse unconsciously rolled over, facing Elliot, and draped an arm over his friend.

When Elliot awoke the next morning, he noticed Jesse was cuddling with him, but it didn't really bother him. He realized he not only enjoyed it, but he'd also had the best night's sleep he could remember since coming here to live. This made him conclude that he not only liked what had happened, but he also wanted to try even more stuff with Jesse and hoped Jesse would be willing to participate.

Many of the boys were taking advantage of the fact that it was Saturday and slept in. We didn't see over half of them until noon or later. When they did return to the world of the living and finally came down to join us, they spent the rest of the afternoon watching more college football games, listening to music or harassing the rest of us.

Mike and Julie Lawrence left for the airport around four and Shannon and Nick rode with them. They all had flights home that evening, since they wanted to be able to rest up and get some other things done on Sunday, before they returned to work. We said good-bye to each of them, but Jake was having a tough time letting Shannon go. However, after Shannon reminded his father that he'd be seeing them again in a month, when they all met in Oklahoma for Christmas, Jake began to perk up. He gave Nick and Shannon one final hug and released them, so they could be on their way.

Brenda and Patrick O'Hara left about a half hour later, but they made certain to give Brandon, Danny and Elliot a very heartfelt farewell. The O'Hara's also agreed to return for Christmas, which they weren't originally planning to do. This was supposed to be Danny and Brandon's year to go to Texas to be with them, but the O'Hara's felt it would be best not to upset Elliot's adjustment to living with us. They said they would wait and have Brandon, Danny and Elliot visit the following year instead. Maybe by then, the boys might even be able to work things out so they can formally adopt Elliot.

Danny and Brandon thanked Brandon's parents for their understanding and generous offer, and Elliot gave his new grandparents a very warm sendoff. He hugged each of them and even kissed Brenda on the cheek, which only helped to endear him to her even more. I'd be willing to go out on a limb here and say this arrangement is going to work out very well – for all of them.

Elliot particularly seemed to warm to his grandmother. I suspect that since he's never had a mother or other female to dote on him it made Elliot eager for that kind of relationship. He seemed to take her fussing over him in stride and possibly even welcomed it.

After dinner, Jesse and some of the others started pestering Jake and me to take them to the movies. Some of them wanted to go see 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, Part I,' but many of the older boys weren't interested in seeing this particular movie. They did, however, still wish to go with us, but said they'd rather watch 'Saw VII' instead. It sounded like a good idea to me, so we all cleaned up quickly and left for the cinema complex.

When we arrived there, I decided I'd seen more than enough of the Saw movies already, so I went to watch Harry Potter instead. Jake reluctantly decided to go with me, but I could tell he'd rather be seeing the other movie. I told him he could go to with the older boys to watch Saw, if that's what he really wanted to do, so he finally thanked me and took off with the others too.

Danny and Brandon were having a similar problem. They preferred to watch 'Saw VII' too, but Elliot wanted to see Harry Potter. I wasn't too surprised. I had notice he had started to get a little squeamish around some of the exhibits at our haunted house, so I suspected he might not wish to partake of the extensive visual gore.

I told them I'd keep an eye on Elliot for them, but they were still reluctant to go, at least until Elliot told them he'd be fine and didn't mind. Since Elliot didn't seem to care, they quickly left and went to catch up with the other group too.

When we went inside the theater, Elliot sat on one side of me, with Jesse next to him, and Joshie sat on my other side, with his two fathers next to him. Although I found the movie interesting, I kind of felt cheated that I would now have to wait several months for Part II to come out. I would have preferred to see the entire movie in one sitting, but I guess I'll have to wait and do that after the DVDs comes out. That's what I also had to do with the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy.

We all enjoyed the movies we went to, and the boys that went to see Saw were trying to tell me about it. I listened to everything they had to say, even though I knew I'd eventually get roped into seeing it, when one of them bought or rented the DVD and brought it home. I wasn't worried about them ruining it for me though. Although the Saw movies do have a plot, it is hard to ruin the extensive blood and gore each movie contains. It's the primary reason I opted not to go see it today.

Once we got home, most of the boys headed to their rooms. Jesse and Elliot were among that group, but I think it might have been because they were looking forward to having some more fun.

"Are you willing to try something new tonight?" Jesse asked, once their door was closed.

"What did you have in mind?" Elliot wondered, before committing himself to anything.

"Are you up for a blowjob?" Jesse asked, very directly.

Elliot seemed to be thinking this over and took a few moments before he answered.

"I wouldn't mind finding out what it's like, but I'm not sure I'm ready to try doing it myself," he answered, very honestly.

"That's fine," Jesse answered. "If you want, I could blow you and then you could just jerk me off like before. I don't mind and don't want you to do anything until you're ready for it."

"Thanks. I appreciate that," Elliot replied. "I wouldn't mind doing it that way, if you're sure it's okay with you."

"Sure, that will be fine," Jesse assured him. "It's not like I haven't done things like this before and as long as I get off I'm happy."

Since this had been agreed to, the boys quickly stripped out of their clothes and then Jesse had Elliot lie in the center of the bed. Jesse was slightly surprised that Elliot was just beginning to firm up and not completely hard already, as he had been on their previous exploits. Even though it didn't make a difference, Jesse was trying to keep track of how Elliot was reacting to each experience.

At this point, Jesse knelt on the bed beside Elliot and slowly bent forward. As his head neared Elliot's groin, Jesse flicked out his tongue and made contact with the glans. When he did, Elliot gasped, but Jesse did not stop. Instead, he skillfully ran his tongue up and down the length of Elliot's shaft, but he didn't do too much more than that, at least not yet. He was afraid Elliot would become too aroused and ejaculate prematurely, so he tried to take things slowly. However, when he brought his mouth back up to the helmet, he slowly took it into his mouth and sealed his lips around it.

Once this had been accomplished, Jesse began to bob up and down on his shaft. As he did, Elliot began to squirm, moan and pant. It almost appeared as if Elliot was experiencing a wonderful dream – but this experience was definitely real.

Elliot's head was swimming from this new sensation and his body was overloaded with powerful feelings. He had never experienced anything as terrific and mind blowing as this before, so he nearly passed out from the unimaginable joy. Brilliant lights and colors began to flash before his eyes and tiny electrical impulses began shooting throughout his torso – and all of this was emanating from his groin.

Jesse never relented and continued to work on Elliot, which in turn elicited more and more powerful sensations to course through Elliot's young frame. This continued until Elliot reached the ultimate heights of euphoria, when his muscles tensed and his body arched off the mattress. At that moment, his penis exploded and released the creamy droplets of liquid that were Jesse's reward for his efforts.

It took Elliot several minutes to recuperate from this truly powerful orgasm and Jesse patiently lay beside him, as he waited to get Elliot's reaction to oral sex. Once he saw Elliot begin to open his eyes and focus on him again, Jesse started to pelt him with questions.

"What did you think? Did you like it?" he asked, in rapid succession.

It took Elliot a few moments to find his tongue, but eventually he responded.

"That was really awesome," he panted, in a voice that sounded as if he had just run a marathon. "I never knew anything could feel so great."

"Even better than the other stuff we've done?" Jesse wanted to know.

"Oh, yeah. Way better than that," Elliot gasped.

"So you'll probably want to do this again?" Jesse persisted, hopefully.

"Hell, yes," Elliot answered, more forcefully. "I'm not dumb. Why wouldn't I want to do it again, when it feels so damn good?"

Jesse immediately recognized Elliot was asking a rhetorical question, so he didn't answer it.

"Okay, I was just checking," Jesse offered.

Then, he waited for Elliot to initiate the next move.

Once he was ready, Elliot put a little lube on his hand and used it to pleasure Jesse. As he was doing this, Elliot actually began to feel a little guilty about his measly effort to repay Jesse for the fantastic climax he had enjoyed just a few minutes before. However, his effort was good enough for Jesse, who eventually experienced his own orgasm, although it wasn't nearly as intense as the one Elliot had enjoyed. Regardless of this minor discrepancy, they each went to sleep satisfied.

The next morning, the pair awoke refreshed and rearing to go again. Since it was Sunday, those who remained at the house went to church with us and then out to brunch. Throughout the day, the rest of them left to return home, even as the professional football games were being played. As to what time each group departed, it depended upon how far they had to travel. Those having to traverse the greatest distances took off as early as 2:00, while a few waited around until as late as 7:00. It wasn't too bad for me to watch them go, since I knew they'd all be returning at Christmas.

Sunday evening, Jesse and Elliot went up to their room a little before 9:00. I think the rest of us were mildly surprised they had turned in so early, but that's probably because we didn't know for certain that they were messing around. Even though we had given Jesse permission to do things with Elliot, if Elliot brought it up, we hadn't yet learned if they were acting upon having a green light. Jesse wouldn't clear this matter up for us for another month, so we were still blissfully ignorant about what they were doing.

Elliot was definitely eager to enjoy the wonderful feelings he got from oral sex again and Jesse was more than happy to do this for him. Once again, Jesse masterfully worked Elliot to an extremely intense orgasm and then it took a few more minutes for Elliot to recover afterward. When this happened, Jesse prepared for Elliot to give him a hand job in return and lay on the bed waiting for Elliot to begin. He was actually somewhat surprised when Elliot spoke instead.

"I think I'm ready to try blowing you now," Elliot announced, totally shocking his partner.

"Are you sure about that?" Jesse asked. "I'm really okay with what we did last night, if you aren't ready to do it yet."

Elliot appreciated that Jesse was giving him a way out, but he'd felt guilty all day long for not giving Jesse the same wonderful experience he had enjoyed. Elliot reached out and placed his hand on Jesse's thigh and began to stroke it gently.

"Look. I'm probably going to end up doing this sooner or later," Elliot confessed, "so I guess now is as good a time as any to start. I've already made up my mind and I'm ready to try this, so just tell me if I'm doing anything wrong."

"Okay, that's fine with me, if you insist," Jesse agreed, "but if you find out you don't like doing it, it's okay for you to change your mind and stop. I won't get mad or anything."

Elliot appreciated Jesse's understanding on this matter and slowly bent forward, so he could begin. Tentatively, he stuck out his tongue and let it touch the surface of Jesse's penis. He studied the feeling for a moment and then considered the taste. He quickly came to the conclusion that it didn't have much of a flavor at all, so he ran his tongue up the shaft to the crown.

Upon reaching the tip, Elliot discovered the mushroom head had a mild taste, but decided it wasn't bad. Undeterred, he ran his tongue around it quickly and then lifted Jesse's penis away from his body, so he could slip it into his mouth. Ever so slowly and cautiously, Elliot let the fleshy appendage enter his oral cavity and carefully closed his mouth around it.

"Watch you teeth," Jesse cautioned. "Try to keep them from making contact by pushing your lips forward, in front of them."

Elliot did as Jesse suggested and began again. For the next couple of minutes, Elliot nodded his head up and down, while working on the top quarter of Jesse's member. When he tried to take in more than that, he began to gag, so Jesse told him to lift up for a second. Once Elliot had done this, Jesse advised him to just take in as much as he could and to not worry about trying to swallow it all. This time, Jesse did as he was told, but after working on Jesse's penis for a short period of time, his jaw began to ache. This caused Elliot to stop again and take his mouth off of Jesse's organ.

"I don't think I can make you cum like this," he stated. "It's making my jaw sore and it always takes you a long time before you shoot."

Jesse chuckled to himself.

"That's not a problem," Jesse replied. "You can finish me off with your hand then."

Elliot appreciated Jesse's willingness to do this for him.

"I'll try it again next time," Elliot offered, "and maybe I'll be able to last a little longer."

"So you didn't mind doing it?" Jesse asked.

"Not really," Elliot confirmed. "In fact, it was kind of fun. I would have kept going, but my jaw began to hurt."

"That's happened to me before too, so don't worry about it," Jesse confessed.

Having received Jesse's reassurance, Elliot began to masturbate him instead and finally brought him to climax. Elliot was feeling a little guilty about not being able to finish Jesse off orally, but he was determined that next time he would do better. Even though he might not to be able to do it all the way to the end, he would do it longer next time. He was determined to make Jesse feel as good as he possibly could.

Once they had each gotten off, Jesse cleaned himself off and then Elliot and he talked a little longer. They were discussing the general idea of having sex with someone they would be with forever, when Elliot asked another question.

"Do you ever kiss the guys you're doing this stuff with?" he wanted to know.

"Yeah. Sometimes," Jesse admitted. "Kissing helps you to make a deeper connection with your partner and I think it even heightens the feelings you get when you cum. Personally, I think I enjoy the kissing almost as much as I do the other stuff."

"Really?" Elliot asked.

Jesse quickly confirmed his previous response with a nod of his head.

"Would you mind if I kiss you then?" Elliot asked.

"Not at all, if that's what you want to do," Jesse agreed. "I've actually been thinking about suggesting it to you., but I wasn't certain how you'd react."

"I wish you had then," Elliot responded.

Encouraged, Elliot awkwardly leaned forward and gave Jesse a peck on the lips, the same way he might do when kissing his mother or grandmother.

"Uh, there's more to kissing than just touching lips," Jesse teased.

Elliot looked at him with questioning eyes, so Jesse began to explain.

"I'm going to kiss you this time," he began, "but I want you to relax your lips and not hold them so tightly together. Then, I want you to follow my lead and copy what I do to you."

Elliot nodded, so Jesse proceeded. Gently, he leaned his head forward until his lips came into contact with Elliot's mouth. Tenderly, he let his tongue reach out and lick Elliot's lips, before he used it to part those two luscious and poutty pieces of flesh. Elliot allowed them to separate slightly, so Jesse guided his tongue through the opening and began to use it to explore inside.

Elliot suddenly remembered Jesse's admonition to do what he did, so he tried to force his tongue into Jesse's mouth, but Jesse's tongue was in the way. Not realizing the problem, Elliot began to ram his tongue into Jesse's so aggressively that it seemed as if he were fighting a duel to the death. Jesse quickly pulled away, so he could offer a bit of advice.

"Take it easy," Jesse told him. "This is supposed to be slow and romantic. You're not fighting a war with your tongue. Just let our tongues meet and get acquainted. You don't have to be so forceful."

Elliot apologized and then heeded Jesse's suggestion, so this time the contact was warm and tender. Gradually, the boys began to let their mouths meld together, as they let their minds and hearts control the actions and draw them together, nearly as one. They made out for several more minutes, but then eventually broke apart. Elliot was panting slightly, as they did so.

"So what did you think?" Jesse asked.

"Oh, wow," Elliot gasped. "That was awesome. I really liked doing that and want to do it again. Can we do it every time we do stuff together?"

"Of course we can," Jesse agreed. "I'm glad you liked it, because I did too."

The last comment seemed to end this new experience for them and they cuddled up together on the bed and dozed off. Elliot had actually suggested cuddling tonight, because he had slept so well and enjoyed it so much the last time they had done it. He figured that since they had school in the morning, it would help him get a good night's sleep. He was right, because they were both well rested and rearing to go when they awoke.

After seeing the boys off to school, I went and got a cup of coffee and sat down. As much as I enjoy having the family home for the holidays, I enjoy the Monday after even more. With everyone safely back home or in school, I get to take some time to enjoy the peace and quiet and unwind from the hectic pace the holiday demanded. I had just poured my second cup of coffee when the phone rang. I set it down and picked up the receiver. I was pleased, and surprised, to hear Mark's voice on the other end of the line.

"Hey, Dad. It's Mark. How was Thanksgiving?" he asked.

"We had a great time and everyone is doing well," I replied. "We missed you though."

"I'm sorry we couldn't make it," Mark apologized. "Thanksgiving is a big holiday for Amy's family, so we had to go there. How's my mom doing?"

"She's fine. She kept Jake and me company, since you weren't here for her to dote over," I informed him. "She makes a mean pumpkin pie too, but I could tell she really missed you."

"I know," he bemoaned. "I wish she and Amy's parents got along better. I know it's not her fault, but I hated not seeing her over the holiday."

"Well, you can make up for it at Christmas then," I hinted. "Get her something nice and spend plenty of time with her. I'm sure that will make everything better."

Mark laughed and said he'd take my suggestion to heart, and then he asked to speak with either Danny or Brandon. I explained they were both at work, which he confessed he felt might be the case. He then went on to inform me that he needed to speak with one of them about the account he'd set up for Elliot. I asked if everything was all right and he assured me there were no problems, but he just needed to discuss an issue with them. I quickly agreed to pass along the message and he thanked me.

As luck would have it, I reached Brandon in between patients and gave him Mark's office number in New York. Brandon confirmed that he would call Mark back when he took a lunch break and then thanked me for passing along the message.

When it came time, Brandon sat down to enjoy a quiet lunch in his office and nearly forgot about Mark's call. As he was gathering up his refuse from the meal, he spied the reminder note he had left himself to call Mark at the office.

Obediently, Brandon quickly dialed the number and Mark's assistant picked up after a couple of rings. She then put Brandon on hold, while she got Mark on the line.

"Hi, Brandon. Thank you for calling me back so quickly," Mark greeted him.

"No problem. We missed you last weekend," Brandon told him.

"I know I was telling Dad that I hated not being with everyone, but unfortunately it couldn't be helped this time," Mark explained. "More importantly though, I wanted to talk to you regarding the account I set up for your son."

"Right, that's what Dad said. What's going on?" Brandon wanted to know.

"Well, after I talked to Danny, when we first set this up, he asked me to make this a straight trust," Mark informed him. "He explained he wanted it to be the same as I did when I started managing all of the boys' accounts."

"Right! We wanted to set up an account like Dad did for all of the others," Brandon confirmed. "The lawyer in charge of Elliot's father's estate was supposed to sell off the house and other things, and then talk to you about how to go about wiring the money into the account you set up."

"That's what he did," Mark acknowledged. "In fact, I spoke to Mr. Courtney just yesterday. During that call, he acknowledged that everything had been taken care of on his end and confirmed the money was sitting in an escrow account, merely waiting for the wire transfer to happen. I had everything ready on my end, so I gave him the account numbers he needed and the bank called my office this morning to confirm that the wire transfer had gone through without any problems."

"Great. That's one less thing we have to worry about then," Brandon confessed. "I know Danny's been a little concerned about how long the lawyers might take to wrap things up and I know Elliot will be glad to hear it's all been taken care of. I guess you'll be sending us whatever paperwork we need to sign then. Right?"

"Well, there's a little more to it than that," Mark told him. "I guess I should have asked more questions when I spoke with Danny the first time, because we can't just dump this much money into a savings account or certificates of deposit like we did for everyone else. It would be a foolish move, because your son will end up losing a ton of money in interest. Had I known how to plan for this, I could have set up some investments and made other arrangements."

"I'm not sure I understand," Brandon admitted. "I know it was a nice house, but it couldn't have sold for much more than three hundred grand. The cars and other possessions would have added a little more to the amount, once they were auctioned off, but I doubt that would have come to more than another couple hundred grand. I know that's a lot of money, but it shouldn't be a problem for a financial wiz like you."

"Brandon, when the bank called this morning they confirmed a transfer well into the seven figure range," Mark advised him. "I don't want to give specifics out over the phone, but I will send you the paperwork, so you can see the amount for yourself."

The line stayed quiet for quite a few seconds, as Brandon tried to wrap his mind around the number Mark had just hinted at. In fact, Mark was beginning to think they'd been disconnected.

"Brandon, are you still there?" Mark asked, hoping for a response.

"Yeah, sorry," Brandon apologized. "Are you certain there hasn't been some kind of mistake, like a transposed decimal?"

"Yes. I had the bank double and even triple check the information," Mark confirmed. "Since then a few boxes of files have arrived at my office that the attorney sent over. I've got records here for financial transactions, stocks, bonds, a hedge fund, some property in Pittsburgh and even a few additional investment accounts. My assistant is still going through all of these records, but no matter what she finds, it still adds up to a lot of money. You mean you guys didn't know about this?"

"The attorney never mentioned anything about a dollar amount," Brandon replied. "He just said it would be a substantial amount. He never indicated it would be that large of a sum. I guess he must have assumed we already had some idea about what Mr. Kennedy was worth or that Elliot had said something to us about it. Unfortunately, Elliot isn't much for talking about his former life, but I would have thought he'd have mentioned that his father was a millionaire. All he told us was that his dad worked for a bank. We met some of his father's colleagues at the funeral, but we never really had a chance to speak with any of them, other than in passing. It would explain why they never mentioned anything either."

Brandon's mind was still reeling, thinking about the figure Mark had hinted at.

"From what I can tell from the files I've looked at," Mark continued, "Mr. Kennedy worked for Penn Capital Partners. That's an investment bank out of Pittsburgh. He was not only a millionaire, he was one several times over."

Brandon's head was really spinning now.

"Listen," Mark continued, "I've got a lot of work to do here to make sense out of all of these files, but I wanted to let you guys know I'm working on a new strategy, now that I know how much money we're dealing with. Once I have everything set up, I'll have a bunch of paperwork that you guys will need to sign."

Brandon finished his call with Mark by confirming their full faith and trust in him to handle this account on Elliot's behalf and would see him at Christmas. Still somewhat dumbstruck, Brandon called Danny and shared Mark's revelation with him. Not surprisingly, Danny was also at a loss for words. Once he regained his composure, they decided they would need to have a conversation with Elliot this evening. They mainly wanted to discover if there might be any other little surprises that were still waiting to reveal themselves.

Even though Brandon tried to keep his focus on his patients, he often found his mind running over the last several weeks to see if he'd missed anything. Elliot had never mentioned that his father had such a sizeable nest egg and they'd never thought to ask. Yes, Elliot's home in Fox Chapel had been very nice, well tended and in a very lovely and upscale community, but it wasn't huge or overly elegant. It was merely a comfortable home, which you might find in any of the upper middle class suburban neighborhoods just outside one of the major metropolitan areas.

Brandon also remembered helping Elliot pack his things when they went back to his old house and had notice that most of Elliot's clothes bore high-end labels. That might have been his first clue, if he'd been paying attention. He'd even seen the tuition bill for the Benjamin Rush Academy and noticed how expensive it was, so that should have been a second red flag. Maybe he should have expected this.

Yes, Elliot could also be a little haughty at times, but he seemed to be aware of this minor flaw and tried hard to curb it, as much as possible. Danny and Brandon had merely chalked up that particular trait to his being an only child. They figured his father had probably spoiled him to some extent, but he certainly wasn't a brat. This led Brandon to start questioning if Elliot even had a clue about what his father had left him. If he did, he hadn't hinted that his father's death would require them to deal with this amount of money.

For the most part, it had been a fairly typical day for the rest of us. After Mark called, I went back to my coffee and took some time to read. Before I knew it, the boys were storming through the door and heading off to their room to change, after they finished saying hello to me and grabbed a snack. Jesse explained he had a considerable amount of homework to do, so he wanted to get an early start on cracking open the books. Elliot didn't have as much homework, so he offered to help me keep an eye on Joshie while I started dinner. He was trying to teach Joshie how to play 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star' on his piano when Brandon arrived home and found me in the kitchen.

It was my turn to be shocked, when Brandon shared the contents of Mark's call with me. I was as surprised as Danny and he had been. Once I got over the initial shock, we sat down and had a cup of coffee while we waited for Danny. Once he got home, the two of them talked for a few minutes and then called their son to join them in their room for a little family chat.

When he walked into the bedroom with them and looked at their faces, Elliot thought he might be in trouble. His first concern was that they'd learned what Jesse and he had been up to. He had no idea what he was going to say to them about it, if this was truly what the meeting was about, so he opted to play dumb.

"Hi, uh… what's going on?" he asked, tentatively.

"Elliot, we were just wondering if you could tell us what kind of work your father did before he died," Brandon began, getting right to the point.

"Oh, he worked for a bank," he answered, a little relieved.

"You mean like Chase or Bank of America or something?" Danny asked next.

"No, it's called Penn Capital Partners," Elliot replied. "It's not like a regular bank, with saving and checking accounts or stuff like that. It has something to do with businesses and investments."

"Do you know what your father did for them?" Brandon continued.

"Yeah, he was a vice president," Elliot answered. "He tried to explain to me what he did once, but it was really complicated. All I know is, he spent a lot of time traveling around Europe, where he met with boring financial people. That's why he put me at the Rush Academy. He got a promotion about six months ago and it meant he'd be traveling a lot more. He didn't want to leave me home alone, so he put me in boarding school. Why? What is this all about?"

Danny and Brandon exchanged looks, before answering Elliot's question. They were beginning to realize that Elliot really didn't have any idea how much his father had been worth or what he'd inherited.

"Elliot, do you remember me telling you back at your house that once your old home was sold and all the paperwork was done, I'd have Uncle Mark open an account for you?" Danny asked. "We were going to have him invest that money for you, so you could use it for college or to get started in life."

"Yeah, I was pretty upset back then," Elliot answered, "but I do remember you telling me that."

"Well, Brandon got a call at work today," Danny explained, "and Uncle Mark told him it's all been taken care of. Your father's estate has been settled and all of the money has been put in a trust for you."

"Oh, cool," Elliot agreed, and then he got up to leave. "Can I go now? I told Joshie I'd be right back, so I could finish teaching him that song."

"Just a little longer," Brandon answered.

"Elliot, did your dad ever talk to you about money or what to expect, should anything ever happen to him?" Brandon continued.

"Well, one time, right after 9/11 he did. What happened that day really scared me, so I asked him what would happen to me, if something happened to him. I knew I didn't have a mom or any family, so I was kind of scared. He just told me not to worry about it, because he'd made sure I would be taken care of, but we never really discussed it after that," Elliot stated.

Elliot started thinking back to the night when he'd asked his father about what would happen if he died. His dad was tucking him in at the time and looked surprised that Elliot had asked him that question.

"Elliot, we found out today that your father left you a very large sum of money, in the millions," Danny advised him. "We don't know the exact amount, because your Uncle Mark didn't want to give those details out over the phone. He will be sending us the documentation however, and will give us the exact amount then. I take it that you didn't know how much was actually there."

"HOLY SHIT!" Elliot exclaimed. "Err, sorry about that. I meant holy crap. I had no idea that my dad had that kind of money."

"That's probably because it wasn't sitting in a bank or savings account," Danny informed him. "It was tied up in a bunch of different type of investments. Some of it was also tied up in some property, but that has all been sold and the money is sitting in your account now. He certainly took very good care of your financial future, so you shouldn't have to worry about a thing."

"I had no idea he had so much," Elliot confirmed.

Danny and Brandon were both smiling now.

"We didn't think you knew," Brandon confirmed. "I've been thinking about this all day and I couldn't recall any time where you had mentioned such a large sum of money."

"No, I hadn't, but what happens now?" Elliot wondered. "Can I get a new tennis racket?"

Danny and Brandon shared a laugh.

"We'll talk about a new racket when the snow melts," Danny offered. "In the meantime, nothing really changes. That money is for college and for you to get a head start with your life after school. It will just be a bigger head start than we originally planned. Uncle Mark is going to come up with some investment ideas and see if he can't make that money work for you a little, while it's sitting there waiting for you to grow up."

"So that means no Ferrari when I turn sixteen?" Elliot whined.

Brandon chuckled and then reached out to tousle Elliot's hair.

"Nice try, sport, but I think the best thing to do is to keep this quiet," Brandon suggested. "You won't have direct access to this money anyway, so you shouldn't go showing off and telling others. Besides, you don't want people trying to suck up to you just because they're hoping to get something out of you. Do you?"

"No, I don't want that and I understand," Elliot concurred. "Remember my friend Thomas? You met him at my old school. Anyway, his family is loaded and some kids were only nice to him because of that."

"Well, just keep this to yourself then," Danny advised him. "If you do, you'll have nothing to worry about. Right?"

"Right, mum's the word," Elliot agreed.

Just then, I called the family together for dinner. Once we were seated, I noticed Danny, Brandon and Elliot all looked much more relaxed after their chat. We all enjoyed a pleasant dinner and then the boys went off to do their homework.

Once we were alone at the table, Danny and Brandon shared the details of their chat with me and I think they'd handled things very well. I believe we all went to bed that night thinking of the opportunities this money would provide for Elliot's future. That's a lot of money for a young person to deal with and it will be our job to make sure he's ready for the responsibility when the time comes. Fortunately, Elliot's father raised a boy with a good head on his shoulders, and all the Ferrari jokes aside, I think Elliot will be an excellent steward of his father's legacy, once he is old enough.

Now that Thanksgiving weekend was officially behind us, we immediately began to gear up for the next major holiday, Christmas. As is usual with having so many children, this means there is a considerable amount of shopping that will need to be done. In addition to that task, this year I also wanted to spend some of my time making Christmas cookies with Jesse, Elliot and Joshie's help. This would allow me the opportunity to help them gain a few cooking skills, while giving all of us some extra treats to enjoy, even though my waistline doesn't really need it.

We had a great time in the kitchen and the boys frequently ended up covered in flour or their faces were smeared with excess icing. No matter how much of the ingredients wound up on them, they had a good laugh and did a great job. We made several different types of cookies and the boys were eager to sample them, both before they went in and after they came out of the oven. It appeared that they were enjoying baking the cookies, as well as spending time working with each other, despite the differences in their ages.

They also helped me decorate the interior of the house, while their fathers and Jake worked to put up the lights and other decorations outdoors. Since some of us have allergies, we put up an artificial tree and Joshie, Elliot and Jesse helped me trim it, once I had strung the lights. They each dug through the boxes of decorations, which included handmade ornaments either they or their uncles had made over the years, and selected the ones they wanted to see on the tree. I made suggestions as to where they should put each item though, so they were spaced out on the tree and not all clumped in one spot, and then I helped Elliot place the angel on the top. Jesse was actually the one who suggested that Elliot should be allowed to do it this year, and I immediately agreed. I think Elliot was thrilled when we gave him this honor.

I also wanted to make certain that Elliot's first Christmas with us would be a memorable one. After all, it was clear this kid should be entitled to enjoy a decent Christmas; especially after all of the crap he's had to deal with. With that in mind, I sat down with Jake, Danny and Brandon, so we could discuss what we were going to do for him and what gifts we were going to buy. I didn't feel it would be good for us to make it appear as if he was getting more than anyone else, but I thought it would be wise to make sure the things he got were items that would have a special meaning for him.

As we entered December, it was time for us to keep another obligation we had made. We'd promised Kevin and Vinnie that we would help them move. After Kevin rented a truck, Jake and I, along with some of the other boys, helped Kevin load his bedroom set and other items, so Vinnie and he could take them to their new place. Before we got to their apartment though, we also stopped by the Shays house, since they had told the boys that they had a few extra pieces of furniture they wanted to donate to them. After loading those items in with the other things, we dropped it off at their new home and then they showed us around.

It was a first floor apartment, which made it easier on Vinnie, and it was quite nice. It had two bedrooms, so they'd have one for visitors. After seeing their guest room, I told them they could also have the bedroom set we'd just taken out of Elliot's room, if they wanted it. Once they agreed, we drove back to the house to pick it up and move it over as well.

Once we had everything in its place, we returned the truck and I told Kevin and Vinnie that I'd meet them the following day, after they got out of work. At that time, I'd take them to the furniture store, so they could choose some of the other items they were lacking. I was happy to offer my help to do this, and they seemed pleased that I was willing to do it for them.

The following afternoon, I drove over to meet them, so we could go together to the store. After they picked out a dining room set, some end tables and a recliner, I told them I'd split the cost of it with them. I explained they could consider it as part housewarming gift and part Christmas present. They thanked me for doing this and then they arranged to have everything delivered. Once all of these items were in their new home, they'd be able to enjoy their newfound privacy in semi-comfort.

Now that I'd done this for them, I went back to preparing for Christmas. Actually, other than the decorating and shopping, this Christmas season was fairly mild for us, at least when compared to what we had experienced in the past. Since Jesse didn't play an instrument and wasn't in the chorus, there were no commitments of that nature to attend with him. Elliot, on the other hand, was a different story.

Once the music department discovered how well Elliot played the piano, they recruited him to play with the orchestra and asked him to accompany the chorus when they performed at the holiday concert. After seeking permission to do this from Danny and Brandon, Elliot enthusiastically agreed.

This meant we would have two concerts to attend this year. We'd go down to listen to Elliot play with the orchestra and chorus, but we'd also be attending Joshie's first concert. He would be performing with his class, when the kindergarten through fourth grades performed at the elementary school concert.

Joshie's concert was held first and Dion and Trey made sure he was dressed up for this big event. When he came out to join us, he was wearing slacks, a dress shirt, vest and bowtie. He looked positively adorable. As soon as we got to the school, Dion and Trey took him down and dropped him off at his classroom, while the rest of us went to find seats.

We quickly found a spot fairly close to the front of the auditorium and shortly thereafter Dion and Trey returned to join us. Then Joshie's mother and other grandparents showed up and sat behind us. True to his word, Dion had been keeping them involved in Joshie's life and had informed them about the concert, so they could see Joshie perform too. We had a fairly substantial wait until the concert began, so we sat and chatted with each other, until the principal stepped out on the stage to greet us.

The kindergarteners were up first and Joshie was on the top row, just right of center. His class sang two songs, 'Up On the Rooftop' and 'Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.' They were absolutely precious and received tremendous applause after each number. In between the two songs, Joshie tried to coyly wave at us, once he located where we were sitting. He had a huge grin plastered across his face and I could tell he was enjoying this as much as we were.

We then sat and listened as grades one through four each did their two numbers and it was a cute and pleasant outing. Once it was over, Dion and Trey went down to get Joshie from his classroom and they took Joshie's mother and other grandparents with them, so they could spend some time with Joshie before we left. After Dion and Trey returned from retrieving Joshie from his classroom, they met up with us again, back at the car. Now, we began our return trip home.

"Was I good, Papa?" Joshie asked, once he was inside.

"You were fantastic," I agreed.

Then he asked similar questions of Jake, Jesse and Elliot. He had obviously done the same to his fathers, mother and other grandparents when they came to fetch him from his classroom. We thought it was adorable that he was so concerned about how he had performed.

A few days later, it was Elliot's turn to shine. Everyone came with us again and once we arrived at the school, Elliot had to go off to meet up with those he'd be performing with. The rest of us went in and tried to find a good spot to watch him from. We located seats on the left side of the auditorium, fairly close to the front; since that's the side the piano was located on. After we got comfortable, we had about a twenty-minute wait until the concert began.

The orchestra was up first and Elliot came out and took his place at the piano.

"Hi, Elliot," Joshie yelled out, when he saw him.

Elliot merely turned his head in our direction, smiled and gave Joshie a shy little wave. It was enough to make Joshie happy though.

I could tell Elliot was slightly chagrinned that he had to play an upright piano here, instead of something as nice as the baby grand he had at home, but he didn't let it affect his performance. The orchestra played four numbers, two traditional pieces and two holiday selections, and they were actually pretty good. We didn't hear a lot of squeaking strings, as you typically hear from novices, and there were very few sour notes. I may be bias, but I thought Elliot did a terrific job. Once they finished playing, the members of the orchestra stood up and took a bow, to the heartfelt applause from those who had listened to them play.

The band came out next, but Elliot wasn't part of this group. They also played very well, but I was eagerly waiting for Elliot to return, along with the chorus. When the band finished playing their final tune, they bowed and received their applause, and then they exited the stage. As soon as they were gone, the chorus filed out to stand on the risers, which were slightly behind where the band and orchestra had been seated.

Once the chorus was in place, Elliot took his seat at the piano again and then received his cue to begin playing. The chorus also performed four selections and I thought Elliot played brilliantly. When they finished and had taken their bow, the high school vocal music instructor acknowledged Elliot and had him stand, so she could recognize his talent. She also thanked him for his help and mentioned that he was the only instrumentalist to have performed with more than one group. She also gave him a very nice compliment.

"Elliot did a wonderful job playing tonight, even though he still has a cast on his right wrist," she stated. "This means that next year he'll probably blow us all away."

He received a wonderful round of applause after she said this and the teacher encouraged him to take another bow. Even though Elliot seemed slightly uncomfortable about being singled out like this, I knew he would be inwardly pleased by the recognition. I thought it was very nice that the choral director had done this for him.

Now that the concerts were out of the way, we began to look ahead to the big day. I made sure I spent a little extra time with Elliot in the interim, so I could find out more about his likes and tastes. I wanted to make certain the gifts we got him were ones he would truly enjoy and would make him the happiest he's been since his father's death.

As the big day drew near, we were all looking forward to spending time with family. The house was going to be full again, and for us, that's what makes the holiday so special and enjoyable. I was convinced this Christmas was going to be a truly wonderful and magical time.

This was going to be a holiday of mixed emotions for me. Jake left for Oklahoma on Thursday night, since he was going to spend Christmas with Nick and Shannon at the Lawrences. I couldn't go with him, since my family was all coming here, but I didn't want to deprive him of spending time with his son either. It's going to be strange that he isn't going to be around to enjoy the holiday with me, but I know we'll each survive.

Thursday night, many of the boys joined me to watch 'A Christmas Carol,' starring Alastair Sim. It was originally titled "Scrooge,' when it was made in 1951, and although it is one of the older versions, it is also the one that I've always considered the best. I also like George C. Scott's portrayal of Scrooge, but still tend to let the earlier version top my list. Anyway, it was nearly 11:00 by the time the movie finished, so we rushed off to bed. Tomorrow the others will be arriving and there will be a lot for each of us to do.

The boys began arriving at the house on Christmas Eve Day, with the first of them showing up about an hour before lunch. Beginning with the arrival of those living closest to us, Little Ricky and Andrew got here first, as they returned from college, and then Ricky, Sammy and Graham were the next to pull in. Ricky had stopped and picked the other pair up in York again, since they thought it would be best to carpool. We had just sat down to grab a snack and chat when Ricky made an unexpected announcement.

"The drive really tired me out," he proclaimed, "but then again I stayed out late and partied last night so that might also have something to do with how I'm feeling."

Ricky flashed me a devilish grin and gave me a wink after saying this. Almost immediately, this made me begin to wonder if his facial gestures were meant to indicate that his evening out might have also included a romantic encounter.

"I'm gong to go upstairs and take a nap. I hope you don't mind," he stated next.

"No, not at all," I replied. "Sleep as long as you need to, because I want you fully alert tonight, for our Christmas Eve celebration." Ricky nodded and then headed up the stairs.

I went back and spent more time with the rest of the family, as the others continued strolling in. I was happy to see each of them as they arrived and we gathered in the family room, where we talked about what they'd been up to since we'd last seen them.

I was surprised when Mark pulled in, because I knew he would be staying with his mother. Not only that, but it was kind of early in the workday for him to be here already.

"I wouldn't have figured you'd be here this early," I told him.

"I actually took off early, because I told them I had a business meeting with one of our clients," Mark announced.

"So you told a fib to leave early?" I asked.

"Not at all. I am meeting with some of our clients," he confirmed. "I'm here to talk to Danny and Brandon about Elliot's accounts."

That explained several things. He was here to have them sign the paperwork for the various things he had done with Elliot's newfound wealth. While he was doing that, Amy stayed in the family room to chat with us, so her boyfriend and the others could take care of business.

"I really hate to bother you with this over the holidays," Mark began, as he addressed Danny and Brandon, "but I really didn't want to mail this information. I felt it would be better to handle this in person."

"It's not a bother," Danny assured him. "We're just grateful you're taking care of this for us."

"Exactly," Brandon added. "I'm not sure we'd have trusted anyone else with this amount of money."

"And I want to thank you too, Uncle Mark," Elliot told him. "It means a lot to me knowing you're watching out for my investments like this."

"It's my pleasure," Mark assured him, "and you're quite a lucky young man. I know you'd rather still have your father, but since that isn't possible, he did leave you very well off. All in all, you have a little more than nine million dollars in the various investments and I hope to make a little more for you, by the time you start needing to dip into it."

"Wow! There's that much?" Brandon exclaimed. "I know you said there were millions, but I didn't expect that many millions."

"Yes, that's what you have," Mark confirmed. "Your father must have played a very key roll with his firm, if this indicates the kind of money he made."

"Yeah, he was pretty smart," Elliot reflected.

Over the next several minutes, Mark had them sign all the necessary paperwork and he explained everything he had done with the money. He also told them he'd provide them with quarterly reports on how the investments were doing and advised them to call any time they had a question or to let him know if Elliot needed any of the money. He had set a small amount up in a savings account and a little more in short term certificates of deposit, in case they needed to get their hands on the money quickly. Other than that, he'd tried to maximize the returns Elliot would make on his investments. He worked hard to come up with a bold, but balanced, portfolio that would protect Elliot's nest egg in the event of another drop in the market.

Once Mark finished this detailed explanation, the three of them thanked him again and then they rejoined the rest of us. Mark stayed for a little while longer, before Amy and he left to go to his mother's place. I knew we'd see them again later tonight and on Christmas day, so we bid them a pleasant drive, as we sent them on their way. They didn't have that far to go, so it really wasn't a big deal.

Some time later, we were still sitting in the family room and enjoying each other's company, when I heard a scream. At first, I couldn't make out who it was or what the person was shouting about, but it definitely sounded as if someone was in distress. I rushed out into the foyer, to see if I could pinpoint where all the noise was coming from.

"Will someone come here and help me," I heard the voice shout again. "I need help. Pleeeeeeze."

It was Ricky and he was calling out from upstairs. I rushed up the steps and entered the room he was staying in. I looked at him concerned, because I wasn't sure what the problem was, but when I spotted the reason he had called for help, I burst out laughing.

"It's not funny," he screamed, "and I want to know which bastard did this to me."

While Ricky had been sleeping, someone had entered his bedroom and used a bunch of very large safety pins to immobilize him. Not only did they pin all of his clothes to the bedding, but they also made certain he was connected to the mattress as well, so he was unable to get up without assistance. I believe he was unwilling to struggle too hard to break free, for fear he would rip his clothing and do damage to the mattress. Slowly, I began unfastening the safety pins and released him from his predicament. There must have been at least sixty or more connecting him to the bed.

A few of the others had followed me upstairs, to see what all the ruckus was about, and when they saw Ricky's dilemma, they started to razz him.

"Looks like Ricky's grown attached to his bed," one of them teased.

"That's one way to get out of doing anything to help," someone else offered.

I was too busy trying to unfasten him to look about or try to determine whom the speakers were.

"This isn't funny!" Ricky screamed. "Someone is going to pay for this."

I thought it ironic that our biggest prankster felt he would have to get even with the person who had pulled this prank on him. This was especially true, knowing Ricky hated it when the others tried to get even with him after one of his pranks.

It took us about fifteen minutes to get him completely unhooked. Once I had his shirt unfettered, he was able to sit up and help me free his pants.

"It's a good thing these aren't my good work clothes," he shouted, "or else someone would be paying for the damages."

"Calm down, Ricky," I urged. "You can't complain about this, since you get so much enjoyment out of doing things like this to everyone else."

He flashed me a dirty look, followed by an unamused glare.

"Don't go sticking up for whoever did this," he challenged, annoyed. "And I never ruin anyone's clothing when I do things."

"And no one ruined anything of yours," I countered. "Those little pin holes are hardly noticeable."

Ricky shot me another disgusted look and then went downstairs to begin his investigation into who had pulled this prank. I could tell he was determined to discover who the instigator was.

My older children and grandchildren began to arrive around 4:00, with the last of them pulling in about an hour and a half later. Fortunately for them, they had missed Ricky's little outburst, although the others were eager to fill them in about what had happened. We also made sure everyone got to meet Elliot and he understood whom each one was. I felt sorry for him, because the poor kid had to learn and match another bunch of names to a new set of faces.

The O'Haras showed up just before the last of my older children's families did and Elliot, Brandon and Danny greeted them warmly as they entered. Brenda was extremely excited about seeing Elliot again and gave him a tremendous hug and affectionate kiss on the cheek. I could tell this meant a great deal to Elliot and he hugged her warmly in return. Once they had broken their embrace, she turned her attention to Danny and Brandon, while Elliot greeted Patrick. It was obvious a connection had already formed between them, which I think they all needed and would benefit from.

We were all pleasantly surprised when it started snowing a short time later. I was happy to see we might have a white Christmas, but I was also grateful it had waited to start until after everyone had arrived here safely first. Unfortunately, we still had to go out in this in a little while, because we would be eating our Christmas Eve dinner out. Just before 6:00, we loaded into the vehicles and drove down to the restaurant. We arrived without incident, but I was a little concerned about how the ride home was going to be. I hoped the road conditions weren't too bad by the time we were ready to leave, but only time would tell.

We had both a wonderful time and a great meal at the restaurant, but I tried to prod everyone to move a little more quickly, so we would finish before too much more snow had fallen. There were still a couple of inches of snow on the ground as we departed the restaurant, and it was also starting to get a little slippery, but we all managed to make it safely to our place.

Once we were inside the house, I had everyone join us in the family room again. It was getting awfully crowded in there, primarily because the family was continually growing, but it was also due to the addition of the piano. No matter how tight the fit was, we all managed to squeeze in. I thought it was cute that Joshie, Lucas and Kylie sat under the piano this evening, as if it was their private box at the theater.

The piano also made me do some other things a little differently this year, because it took up much of the space I normally used to put up the tree. Instead of trying to squeeze it in here too, I set the tree up in the rec room, which is located at the back of the house. Unfortunately, this also meant it couldn't be seen from the road, as had been the case in the past, but our options had been limited. I could have put it up in the living room, but we would need that space for the extra tables we used during the meal, so the tree got shoved to the back of the house this year.

We began the evening's activities with Elliot playing Christmas carols, which the rest of us sang along to. Since my older children and grandchildren had never heard Elliot play, this came as a pleasant surprise to them. It also got Elliot a bit more attention from everyone, which I think he also enjoyed. If you ask me, Elliot is actually a closeted attention seeker. He enjoys others noticing his accomplishments, but he doesn't want to go out of his way in order to attract this attention to himself.

Once we finished singing, I sat in my chair and began to read, 'Twas' the Night Before Christmas,' which is another part of our family tradition. My grandchildren, Elliot and Jesse were gathered around me, as I began reading this enchanting poem to them. Just as I was finishing, and right on cue, Santa appeared at the picture window. His appearance excited Kylie, Lucas, Joshie and Megan, but I think Elliot also found it amusing as well. Even though Elliot is too old to still believe in Santa, I think he was curious as to how we'd set this up.

What had happened this time was that no one had noticed that Dustin did not come into the family room with us. Once we reached the house, he went and changed into our Santa outfit and then listened for me to begin reading. At that point, he snuck out the backdoor and walked around to where he could see into the family room. Then, he waited and watched for me to close the book, which was his signal to walk up beside the picture window and peer inside, so the little ones could see him.

The children squealed with delight when they saw Santa and then their parents began urging them to get to bed. The kids were told Santa couldn't drop off their presents until they were sleeping, so without putting up a fuss, they did as they were asked. Before long, they were in their rooms and drifting off to asleep.

"That was pretty clever," Elliot told me, once the little ones were gone.

"We do it every year," I explained, "so they have an extra incentive to go to bed and not stay up."

"Cool! I wish I'd had such a big family when I was little. This is fun," he added, as he got up to walk away.

Once we felt the little ones were asleep, some of us began to put together the toys that needed assembling, as others wrapped the final few gifts. Then we began carrying everything into the rec room and arranging the items beneath and around the tree. Once again, the room was filled with gifts waiting to be opened in the morning. Then we all went to our bedrooms, knowing the little ones would probably be getting us up fairly early.

It actually wasn't too bad this year. The kids didn't start coming downstairs until shortly after 7:00. I had been up for about a half-hour by then and had already made a pot of coffee. When I saw my grandchildren running back to the rec room, so they could check things out, I jumped up and told them they had to wait. I said they wouldn't be able to unwrap their gifts until I got everyone up, which wasn't exactly what they wanted to hear. Once I was sure they were going to comply with my request, I went around the house and knocked on bedroom doors. After I made sure everyone was up and moving, I came back downstairs to make certain the little ones weren't trying to get a head start unwrapping their presents.

A few minutes later, I heard my daughter-in-law scream and some of the others begin to laugh. I went out to see what was up and they were all staring and pointing at Ricky.

"What?" he snapped, annoyed.

"What are you supposed to be?" Elizabeth asked in return.

"What are you talking about?" Ricky challenged, growing irritated.

"Have you looked into a mirror this morning?" I asked next.

"No! Why?" he wanted to know.

"Just go do it," I told him. "You'll understand."

Ricky went into the downstairs bathroom to do what I'd asked and then I heard him shout.

"Which one of you assholes did this," he screamed.

While he had been sleeping, someone had snuck into his room and applied makeup to his face. When he came down this morning, he looked as if he was a member of the rock group, 'KISS.'

"Who the fuck keeps doing these things to me?" he shouted. "Some son-of-a-bitch is definitely going to be sorry he decided to screw with me."

"Ricky, please watch your language," I advised him. "There are little ones around."

Ricky wasn't happy, but I was finding this highly amusing. I had no idea who was pulling these pranks, but I was a little concerned about how far Ricky might go to seek his revenge. Someone had gone to a great deal of trouble and done a lot of planning to pull these two pranks off, but he was also very fortunate that Ricky was a sound sleeper.

As I thought about it, these pranks had taken a great deal of effort. First, the person doing this needed to round up a multitude of safety pins to fasten him to his bed, and now he had to dig up some of our left over makeup from Halloween to do what he did to Ricky's face, even if he hadn't done a very good job. The application of the makeup was kind of a rough, but we definitely got the idea of what he was trying to accomplish.

Ricky rushed off to clean the makeup off his face and the rest of us waited for him to return, before we began opening the presents. We made certain that everyone had one gift with his name on it before we allowed anyone to begin unwrapping. Once the okay was given, a flurry of excitement was unleashed and wrapping paper was being ripped off of packages and tossed in a multitude of directions.

It only took about forty-five minutes before all of the gifts had been unwrapped and then we began checking out what everyone else received. Elliot looked quite pleased and I thought he'd done quite well. Danny and Brandon had purchased him an iPod and a cell phone, along with some new clothes, and he got some games for the Wii – a sports package, from his grandparents, along with some more clothes.

"We hope you like the Wii games, dear," Brenda told him. "We weren't sure what types of things you were into, but you had said you used to play tennis and took kung fu. This has tennis, baseball, golf, bowling, boxing and Wii fitness training, so we thought you might find something you'd like."

"I'm sure I will. The tennis and fitness program sounds like a lot of fun, but the boxing might also be good," Elliot confirmed. "Thank you for getting this for me and thank you for the clothes too. They're very nice."

The O'Haras seemed very pleased with his response, but that wasn't all of Elliot's gifts though. His uncles had chipped in and purchased him some music CDs, which he could load on his iPod and then listen to them whenever he wanted. These CDs were by various artists and selected merely because the ones who had selected them liked the music and thought Elliot would enjoy them too. Elliot seemed pleased with the various selections and thanked them.

I had given him a couple of items from Jake and me, the first being a hardcover edition of 'The Collected Works of William Shakespeare.' This was one of the things Elliot had told me he was interested in, although he also added that he hoped it didn't make him look like too much of a geek. I told him it didn't and stated it merely highlighted his intelligence and intellectual curiosity. He seemed satisfied with my response.

In addition to that, I picked up the DVD set of the complete first season of 'Rome,' because he told me how much he liked history, especially ancient history. I thought he'd get a few hours of enjoyment out of watching the videos as well. I also bought him a very nice sweater, for those cold Pennsylvania days and nights.

"Wow. The stuff you got for Elliot was kind of lame," Jesse told me, when he thought we were alone. "You usually pick out better gifts than that."

"No they weren't. They were great," a voice behind us offered.

When we turned around, we discovered Elliot had overheard Jesse's comment.

"I thought those gifts were great," Elliot continued. "You know what a nerd I am and I love this kind of stuff."

Jesse seemed surprised by Elliot's response, but didn't say anything more. I'm not sure if he mentioned this to Elliot again later, to see if he was just trying to be nice and spare my feelings. Regardless, I knew they were what Elliot wanted, because he was the one who had given me the idea, although he hadn't specifically mentioned those exact items.

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