Give me your love

Tobey Dawson went home one day, to discover a memo written by his wife, who was soon to be his ex-wife. It read 'You only seemed to treasure our two children, in this marriage. If you had told me you were gay or bisexual, maybe I could have stopped myself from marrying you. But you seem to love your much older boss more than me. I have left the children up to you, so you can raise them. Regards.'

He briefly sighed as he tossed the note onto his desk, which he often used when he had to take his work home. Yet he didn't feel any remorse over his feelings or behaviour. It all seemed natural. He couldn't help who he was, or how he felt. He had been working with his boss, Steven for more than 15 years. He had feelings for his boss, who was more than 10 years older than him, for quite a while. His marriage was a fakery from day one, as the woman that he married fell in love with him, not the other way round. He just couldn't say no, and in this town, it was unusual for handsome men like him to remain single at his age. His boss was also married and divorced, and had a daughter he treasured.

Tobey also worked with a man who was bisexual, freely admiring and loving men and women. That man, named Mike, wasn't very attractive looking, so he wasn't expected to marry, but he said he loved admiring the nice men and women in town. Tobey sometimes wished he could be as self-confident as Mike. It was also true that Mike helped Tobey express his feelings more openly towards Steven.

It was only about one year ago that their marriage showed cracks, as he couldn't keep up the facade.

---One year ago---
'Are you free tonight to join me at the pub?' asked Steven one day as they getting ready to leave the workplace.

'Sure, let me just email my wife to tell her I'll be drinking with my mates,' Tobey replied.

'I'll be heading home, as you two head on to the pub, but be careful Tobey; a woman's intuition is quite accurate, you know?' Mike chuckled.

'I'll agree to that, as my ex-wife was very intuitive,' Steven said, grabbing his coat.

"I'll be out drinking with my boss, Steven. I promise I won't be late."

That was the email that Tobey sent to his wife. After the drinking session, he had come home, although both of their kids were asleep.

'Steven really seems to like you,' she told him.

'Um, yeah, I agree. He's a great boss and he's taught me all sorts of things over these years whilst I've been working under him.'

'You should show that same dedication to me, as you do towards your job, your boss, and your beloved kids,' she huffed.

'I do. I really do. Maybe you're just not seeing it,' he replied wearily.

---1 month later---
One night, Tobey and his wife had invited Mike over for supper. After the pasta dinner, Tobey took the effort to introduce Mike to his kids. Mike and Tobey ended up playing with the kids, while Tobey's wife was washing the dishes.

'Don't tug on Mike's hair,' laughed Tobey, as he told one of his boys to stop tugging on Mike's long hair.

'It's all right,' giggled Mike.

'After you two are done playing with the kids, would you like to have some coffee at the table?' Tobey's wife asked them.

'Sure, we'd love to,' Mike answered.

'Mike, you seem to be quite good at dealing with kids yourself; just as my husband is.'

'I haven't got kids; but all kids are lovely,' he said.

'I'm sure that's what you would say,' Tobey's wife said.

'Now, now, there's no need to be rude,' Tobey said quietly, sipping his coffee.

'I'm not offended, Ms Dawson. Kids are so innocent, generally speaking.'

'Mike's just determined to be a bachelor forever, aren't you?' Tobey joked.

'Well, I don't want to settle down.'

"My husband sure has a campy friend," Tobey's wife thought.

---3 months later; month 4---
'I just hope my wife doesn't see these pics on my mobile,' Tobey chuckled, as he tossed the mobile onto the sofa at Mike's flat.

'If she's the kind of lady to look at your phone, it's not worth it, darling,' Mike replied.

The two had just been practising kissing and hugging, as a way for Tobey to get used to expressing himself physically. Mike admired Tobey's good looks, and didn't mind practising kissing and hugging with him, even though he knew that Tobey loved Steven.

'Are you going to take pictures of you and Steven kissing if you get the chance?' Mike asked.

'Maybe. I'm starting to feel more confident about my abilities to express affection to other men,' Tobey admitted.

'Good. I wish I had a steady partner. I enjoy being the perpetual playboy that flirts with men and women, and many people comment on my personality; I've never met anyone that said I was good-looking. I sometimes envy your good looks.'

Mike's lush brown eyes clouded a bit for a moment.

'I'm sure someone will recognise that inner beauty is so much more important than outer beauty. I know you know that. Sometimes I get mistaken for Steven's secretary because I'm much younger than him,' Tobey smiled.

'I suppose you're right. Thank you, Tobey.'

'I'm the one to thank you; kissing men feels so much better than kissing other women. I know you're bisexual, but do you have any preferences?' Tobey asked.

'I generally like both, but fucking a man feels better than a woman. So I slightly prefer men, but that doesn't mean I can't admire women. These days I'm more attracted to men though. Maybe I'm more gay than bi these days,' Mike replied to him.

'Well, I used to think I was straight, but after all these years, I know I'm gay. So you know consider yourself gay?'

'Gay for romance and sex, bi if it's only platonic. Sexuality is so complex, but that's how I feel about myself now.'

---2 months later; month 6---
'Thanks for staying at this office late to work with me,' Steven told Tobey.

'I don't mind being with you. I like being with you, or my kids, or even Mike, but not my wife. She's getting suspicious about me, I reckon,' Tobey replied to him.

'You're becoming more open about your feelings. Maybe Mike's influence is rubbing off on you in a good way.'

Tobey wrapped his arms around Steven, and kissed him on the lips, before he said,

'Even Mike's more gay than bisexual these days.'

Steven grabbed his phone and held it up as the two embraced and kissed again.

'I'll send this to your phone,' he told him.

'Thanks,' Tobey said to Steven.

'I found this new restaurant in town that I want to take you to. Are you free this Saturday evening?' Steven asked Tobey.

'I am free that evening; I'll just have to tell my wife that I have work to do that night,' he replied.

---3 months later; month 9---
'How's your relationship going with Steven?' asked Mike that day at lunch.

'Everything's great so far. The other weekend, we even made love at his house. I don't know how long my marriage can withstand this whole situation though,' Tobey replied.

'Well, as long as you don't lose Steven, I'm presuming you're quite happy,' Mike said, while taking a sip of his coffee.

'Or my kids, too. If I can get custody of them, I'm sure Steven would be happy to raise them with me,' he said.

Mike set down his coffee cup, and gently patted him on his back.

'I haven't got kids, but I can give you my emotional support.'

'I just hope my wife allows me to raise them, or at least allow me to spend time with them,' he continued.

---3 months later; the present---

His wish had come true, as his wife had left the children for him to raise. As for Steven and Tobey, their relationship had deepened, and Steven had promised him to help him raise the children, even though they wanted to respect each other's privacy and agreed not to live together. Mike officially came out as gay a few days later, saying that he thought he was bisexual, but that he only regards women as friends and 'muses'; in other words, his artistic inspirations. Mike also said he would offer his emotional support if anything happened.

He would explain to the kids about the situation the next morning. He knew they would understand. He was no longer living a lie, and he gained more confidence with the help of his best friend Mike and his boyfriend Steven. His lost a woman in his life, but that didn't matter to him. As long as he had his friends, his boyfriend, and his children, he would be fine.