Keeping Tom

A note about this chapter, the court process goes the way I want them to so it may not be accurate. Don't get mad at me if it's not how things really go in court. And then the normal note: This story does contain homosexual pairings, if you don't like that kind of thing, do not read this story.

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The next morning Damien woke up and heard the voices of little kids. He rubbed his eyes and got dressed. He walked out to the living room and saw that Phil was there along with two little twin boys. Before he knew what was happening the two 5 year olds ran up to him. “Who are you?”

“Are you one of Tom’s friends?”

“Toms friends are nice.”

“Are you nice?”

Damien couldn’t help laughing as he looked back and forth between the two eager faces. “I am one of Tom’s friends and I think I’m a nice person.”

“Good cause we don’t like mean peoples.”

“Yeah, mean people suck.”

“Brandon!” Phil said in a stern voice from across the room and Brandon pouted.

“Daddy doesn’t like that word but we do” said the other twin.

Damien chuckled. “I’m Damien, what are your names?”

The one who was still pouting said, “I’m Brandon and I’m in trouble.”

“I’m Victor and I’m not.” He stuck his tongue out at his brother who started to pout even more.

“Nice to m-meet you both.” He crouched down in front of them and then looked at Victor, “So, how do you get your b-brother over here to stop pouting?”

“Tickle ‘em!” Brandon shook his head and started to run away but his twin tackled him and started to tickle him. “Help me Dame-en!”

Damien smiled and helped Victor tickle his twin and felt lighter and happier than he had in a very long time, since he was about these boys’ age. Tom, Andrew and Phil watched with smiles on their faces. There wouldn’t be court again until the next day so they all had the day off. Phil and Jolene were going to spend the day alone with each other. They were trying for kids again and the boys were getting old enough that keeping them out of rooms they were asked to stay out of was getting harder and harder.

Phil smiled and then said, “Well looks like they’ll be fine here. I think we may have a new babysitter in Damien there.”

Andrew looked up at his brother and said, “You’ll need one once we go. Maybe he could live in this place and help you guys with the boys. He seems to like them and they seem to love him.”

“I’ll talk to him about it tomorrow after the trial. See you all later.” Phil left to go home to his wife.

***

As the trial progressed Damien moved into the apartment with Tom and Andrew. The plan was still for him to stay in the place once Tom and Andrew left to travel. Tom was now out of his casts but still walking with a cane that was at odds with his youthful face but his leg was slow in regaining its strength. His arm was almost back to normal. It still ached on occasion but was almost back to full strength.

They were waiting for the jury to decide. Tom was pacing with his cane and Damien was staring blankly out a window. It was fairly certain that once Frank was put away the others would follow in quick succession. They were hoping for the best but both men were terrified that the jury would let him go. Andrew walked in front of Tom and put his hands gently on the younger man’s shoulders. “Tom, look at me.”

Tom looked up at Andrew and pulled the taller, stronger man close. Andrew rubbed his back in a soothing way and Tom struggled to hold back his tears. Damien came over and Andrew wrapped an arm around him as well. The two younger men needed the comfort that Andrew’s strong arms provided. Andrew looked over at Phil who gave him a weak smile.

Then the door to the courtroom opened and a man announced that court would start again. The jury had only taken half an hour. Andrew squeezed both men and then kept an arm wrapped around their shoulders as they walked back into the courtroom. Once everyone was in the judge asked the jury what they had decided.
“We find the defendant guilty on all charges.”

Tom and Damien both hugged Andrew tight as they started to sob with relief. They were joined by a chorus of relieved sobs from every boy and man that had been kept in that place. The jurors shot them sympathetic looks and then quite a few of them shot a glare towards Frank who was looking slightly sweaty at this point. The judge spoke once more. “It is common practice for me to take a day or two to decide on the sentencing but in this case I have already decided. After hearing from almost 30 young men about their years spent in this man’s club and the horrible things that were done to them there I can only appease my conscience by giving the defendant the maximum sentence for each charge which totals 130 years in prison. I have also decided he will not have a chance at parole.”

Tom and Damien started to calm down as Andrew rubbed their backs in small circles. When the judge dismissed the court the two young men stood up and looked at Frank as he was led out of the courtroom. The man looked too stunned to notice they were there. It was quite clear he had been expecting an easy victory but the opposite had happened. Andrew leaned his head down between the two younger men and whispered, “And now he will get a taste of his own medicine as inmates do not take kindly to men of his kind.”

Both younger men couldn’t help the slightly malicious smiles that graced their faces. They both turned back towards the whole Jamison family and then walked out of the courtroom. The whole group split up into different cars and drove to a restaurant owned by a friend of the family. The owner had reserved the whole restaurant for them for the whole night regardless of the outcome.

The twins were eager to ride with Tom, Damien and Andrew. Tom rode in the passenger seat with Andrew driving. Victor, the more observant of the two twins said, “It went well?” They would be six in another three months and ready to start first grade.

Damien smiled big, “Very well. The bad man will be in prison until he dies.”

The twins let out happy squeals having been told that was the best thing that could happen. Brandon squirmed his way into the front seat and sat on Tom’s lap. He wrapped his little arms around Tom and said, “I’m happy for you.”

“So am I!” chimed in Victor from the back. “For you too Dame!”

“Yeah, you too!”

Both men smiled and hugged the twin closest to them. “Thanks boys. Now are you ready to drink lots of soda and drive your parents crazy?” Damien said with a mischievous grin.

***

A week later, Tom and Andrew were getting ready to leave for Australia. They had packed most of their things when Tom turned towards Andrew and said, “Drew I… do you think Damien could come with us?”

Andrew looked up at Tom and smiled. He had been thinking about asking the same thing. During the trial the three had grown very close. At times it was hard for Andrew since both of the younger men had been through so much and had very sudden mood swings but he had grown to love them both deeply. “I was about to ask the same thing. I… I’ve become so used to having both of you around.”

Tom smiled and ran over to Andrew and pulled him into a hug. The two had become close friends but Andrew didn’t push for more. The occasional hug was fine with him if that’s all Tom or Damien were capable of. He loved them both and wouldn’t do anything to push either one of them away. “Let’s go ask him if he wants to come!”

Andrew smiled when Tom grabbed his hand and led the way out to the living room where Damien was watching a movie. The man looked rather depressed but he tried to cover it quickly when the other two came in the room. Andrew looked over at Tom who nodded and then looked back at Damien, “Damien, we wanted to see if you’d like to come with us to Australia.”

Damien blinked a few times and his jaw dropped slightly. He obviously hadn’t been expecting an invitation to join them. “I… yes… of c-course.” He stood up and walked over to them and then hesitantly pulled them into a hug. Andrew wrapped one arm securely around each of them and they stayed that way for a while. Damien pulled back first and said, “D-don’t I need a ticket?”

A blushing Andrew said, “Well… honestly I bought a ticket for you a few weeks ago hoping Tom would want you to come along as well.”

Damien didn’t know what came over him but he found himself kissing Andrew excitedly. He had never kissed anyone before. That was one rule Frank made that all of the boys were happy for. There was no kissing on the lips because Frank feared that one of the clients would become too attached to one of the boys if they kissed them on the lips. Andrew was surprised at first but started to return the kiss.

Tom watched them kiss and started to feel jealous but he wasn’t sure of which one. He cleared his throat and watched as they pulled apart. The look Andrew gave him made his heart race. As the man slowly pulled him into a kiss he closed his eyes and started to return the kiss. This had to be the best feeling he had ever felt. Andrew was so gentle as he kissed him. When they pulled apart they kept eye contact for a few moments before Tom turned to Damien.

His heart started to pound once more as he pulled Damien into a kiss. Their kiss was one of understanding and care. There wasn’t the level of passion that had been there with Andrew but love was definitely there. When they pulled apart the three men looked at each other and smiles started to form on their lips. Andrew was the first to speak, “That was okay with both of you… right?”

“I c-can’t speak for Tom but I enjoyed b-both kisses.”

“I did too. I think I like kissing… I’m just not sure about other things.”

Andrew was quick to say, “And that’s fine, really. After those two kisses I think I could die a happy man if I just got to kiss each of you once more. I… I think I love both of you and I can understand if you don’t feel the same way or if… if you can’t say it. I’m fine with that.”

Tom and Damien exchanged a look and then Tom said, “We… we may never be able to say that Andrew. I… it’s hard to trust people let alone… love them. It’s… not you.”

“You are a n-nice man Drew b-but… we’ve both got a lot of history t-to overcome.”

“I understand that. I… it took me from the time I was adopted at the age of 8 until I was 18 before I told my adoptive family that I love them and I haven’t been through near as much as both of you. I don’t have to hear those words from either of you but I hope you don’t mind hearing them from me.” He looked at them uncertainly hoping he wouldn’t make them uncomfortable with the love he felt for them.

Once again the other two exchanged a look that seemed to speak without them saying a word. With their shared experiences they could pretty much figure out what the other was thinking. “I… I’ve never heard those w-words before but… they made me feel warm inside. It’s a n-new feeling… being loved… b-but I think I like it.” Damien smiled at Andrew who relaxed a bit and then looked over at Tom.

“My grandfather was the last person before now to tell me he loved me. I never thought I would be loved again, but I am and I feel a bit of that happiness I used to feel around him coming back so please do not stop saying it, please.”

Andrew smiled and placed a short kiss on both of the other mens lips and said, “In that case I’ll have to tell you both that I love you every day.” The smiles he got in response made his heart soar. He pulled them both close and then said, “We better finish packing and let my brother know what’s going on since our flight leaves in the morning.” The other two nodded but stayed latched to him for another 10 minutes before they all finally broke apart and started doing the last of the packing.

They would leave a few things behind and now that Damien was coming with them Andrew would let his brother use the apartment as a guest house of sorts. If Phil had friends come visit who had families of their own they could stay at Andrew’s place. The rest of the night was spent packing, double checking to make sure they got everything they needed, and calling people who needed to be notified of their departure. Both Damien and Tom’s therapists had wished them luck and happiness and told them websites to visit once they got to Australia to find therapists they could see.

***

I'm going to post the start of the short story from Damien's perspective and hopefully next week I'll post the next chapter in both of them.