Thanks to all my betas who contributed in different ways: lovingyouisbest, JD Bell; Joy Booth and Fredrica.
Final tweaking is my own.
The dialogue in Spanish/Spanglish is taken from what I know. If anyone sees any corrections, let me know. If anyone feels I've portrayed the 2 characters Gera and Carrera inaccurately or unkindly, let me know.
In Between Days: A Lydon outtake
His mind was racing:
That fucking bitch. It's not his baby. What a whore. She just got him in bed that one time and now he's going to be stupid and marry her. Fuckin A! He must have been pretty fucked up to even go to bed with a woman, especially her. She's a fuckin dog! I bet she's the one who talked him into leaving me.
He's right. No one really accepts gay relationships. He's just doing it to pass.
What the fuck were they doing, leaving me here, anyway? I can't believe it.
Now what am I going to do?
I have nothing to go home to. Wicked made that hell livable and now that's goneā¦
At least I have my money and a fake ID.
SONOFABITCH! That fucking bitch stole my fucking money and my phone! I'll kill her!
I better get the hell out of here.
Where will I go? What will I do?
Damn I'm hungry.
Fuckit. Kitty won't tell mom and dad, not if I figure out a good story to tell her. And she has money she can lend me from her account. I'll pay her back. Besides, she owes me.
"Collect call from Lydon Bennet."
"I'll take it. Lydon? What happened, you asshole! We were going to go party together and then you flaked out on me."
"I'm so sorry Kittycat. Wickham, he left me. Millie said she was pregnant last night. We were all going to Vegas when we woke up this morning, but I'm the only one here, now and they took everything! I don't know what I'm gonna do!"
"Wait! I'll go get dad, he'll know what to do."
"NO! WAIT!"
"What is it Lydon?"
"Kittycat, it's a secret. Dad can't know! No one can know. No one accepts me. They all hate me. I just need some help from you. You're the only one I can trust baby sister."
"Really?"
"Yeah. 'Course. Just do me a favor and don't tell ANYONE where I am."
"That's easy, I don't exactly know where you are. Just in El Paso."
"What I mean, Kittycat, is that you gotta tell mom and dad something so they don't look for me, and you gotta do the same for Aunt Phil, Uncle D, and whoever else comes lookin'."
"Alright, since it's a secret. I'll do it for you, big brother."
"I really really need you to do something else!"
"OK. Anything to help you."
"Can you get some of your Fair money and send it to me? I'll pay you back. Please, Kittycat? I promise."
"Alright, Lydon. How will you get it?"
Looking out the window, he was relieved to see a dollar store/ cell phone store that also happened take wire transfers. "Wire it to _."
"OK. Big brother. I love you."
"I love you too, Kittycat. Bye."
After the exorbitant wire transfer rate, the money Kitty sent him was only enough to pay for the room for that night with a dollar left over. He walked to the only place he knew after he bought a candy bar for breakfast.
PPPxoxNMxoxPPP
"Alright, alright, I'm coming. G-dammit who the fuck comes to the door of a club owner at this hour?" Gera shuffled to see who was pounding on the door, he fingered the baseball bat kept nearby in case it was someone who was up to no good.
"What can you say, you're popular, darling. Go see who it is and then come back into bed." Carerra called, from down the hall, flipping his sleeping mask back on and rolling over.
Gera opened the little door to see who was outside, disturbing his beauty sleep. "Jacob! You look awful, pobrecito! What happened?"
"Uh, well, that's why I'm here. Can I come in?"
"Of course muchacho, hold on." The chains and locks clinked and clanked as Gera unlocked the thick security door. "Y que la! You look hungry. Come, let's get some breakfast." He herded his friend into the kitchen and scurried about fixing migas con chorizo. "Now, you must work for your breakfast, here. cut these up like so. And tell me what happened to you."
His friend worked while he told the story. "Wicked got called back to, uh, Colorado, suddenly. I had to give him our money because his, uh, Uncle is in this hospital dying and he needed the money to get back home and, uh, stuff."
"That must be awful." Gera lamented as he kept working.
His friend's voice broke. "He's all I have left. You know how it is. My parents hate me for being gay. They won't even talk to me. I earned a bunch of money I got from my rodeoing but they won't let me touch it."
Gera looked up, "Well, why don't you help out here for a little bit until you figure things out. But I got one condition. I see how you two are with the glass and we don't do no glass here. Here, me and papi we say no glass. Entiendes?" He wiped his hands and held one out to shake on it.
The handsome young cowboy shook on it. "Yes, I understand."
"And another thing. That Wicked is no good, muchacho. Perfect name for that douchebag if you ask me. You're too good for him. I mean, I'm sorry that his Tio is dying and all, but why you gotta go and give him all your money? Just because you're together it don't mean one is better than the other. Not for no reason. No. He should have thought of his man and left you some money. Look at you, you're starving and your clothes are dirty. What kind of man is he to treat you like that even if he is so sad about his Abuelo is so sick like you say."
"Who would want me?" The young man's voice was mournful.
"I can't believe you say this. Are you blind? A young hot cowboy like you? I got lots of friends who ask about you. You could have your pick. Just don't go for some lying no good man who can't get his story straight about who's sick, you silly fool." Gera shook his head.
Lydon had the good sense to blush about being caught in a story. "Ah! I knew it! You couldn't even keep your story straight-sick tio, abuela, my ass! That no good man left you and took your money didn't he?" When his young charge blushed harder, Gera had the good grace to know when to stop prodding. "Get yourself a papi like me. Or maybe I'm the papi, since it's my club."
"Who're you calling papi now, my little cub?" Carerra yelled down the hall.
"You better have some clothes on papi, we have a guest." Gera answered back.
Emerging from the bedroom, the burly man enveloped his young friend in a hug, muffling his greeting, "Hola Carrerra!"
Carerra settled onto a barstool while the other two men finished breakfast. After a few moments he got a gleam in his eye. "Papi, remember those rodeo nights that were such a big hit?"
Gera chuckled, "Aye. Now those were the days, we had all the bartenders dress up in daisy dukes and everyone wanted to ride the bull."
"Ooooeee I love it when you talk dirty, honey." Carerra got up and hugged his man from behind, smacking him on the cheek. "We have a real live vaquero here; we should put him to good use!"
Both men looked at their young friend and Gera answered "I love it! Can you ride a mechanical bull?"
The young cowboy smirked "I can ride anything you put between my thighs."
Carerra grabbed his man's tea towel and swatted 'Jacob' on the rear. "Slut!"
They all laughed until tears rolled down their cheeks. After a hearty meal, the three men spent the better part of Sunday downstairs, cleaning up the bar and getting everything in working order. The two older men were strong, but after some time setting up the heavy bull, they were huffing and puffing.
They really enjoyed having the younger man around to help with the hardest physical labor. They hated to admit it but Carrera and Gera weren't as young or as strong as they used to be. If Lydon noticed their self consciousness, he generously ignored it, instead heaping the men with gratitude for giving him a chance.
PPPxoxNMxoxPPP
Hours later, the men cleaned themselves up, and returned to the the club area to get things started. Since Sunday nights were generally slow anyway, Gera thought that he'd take things easy on Lydon and just use him as a cocktail server. Lydon ('Jacob') had to remember orders for drinks he never knew existed. He enjoyed the cute men who flirted with him.
Other times Lydon became annoyed, disgusted and even frightened when he witnessed the spectrum of behavior exhibited by his customers. Lydon was a beautiful, well fit young buck and men of all ages and types wanted him. On this night he saw that sometimes such attention was not welcome. He could definitely see that not everyone was as kind as Lizzy's theatre compatriots. He began to notice how Wickham's behavior was more like the men Lydon now wanted to avoid. He wondered whether his aversion was simple self protection or if it arose from his experience.
Some experiences he'd had with Wickham were more difficult to avoid. He was also offered to party several times, and it was really tempting to give in. Gera and Carrera kept a sharp eye on him and intervened often. Lydon felt simultaneously annoyed and grateful. He was also getting antsy. While his body didn't need the speed, his mind tried to trick him into thinking he needed it. Lydon had more than one close call. On one such occasion, Carrera pulled him aside.
"Muchacho, I have someone I want you to meet. You should take a break and have a burger or something and I'll find him."
Lydon was happily wolfing down some thick home fried kettle chips with aoli along with his sirloin burger when Carerra and a diminutive man with outlandish clothes walked up.
"Superman, meet my friend Lydon. Lydon, this is Superman."
"I'm Superman, Man of Steel."He put out his hand and Lydon became sick to his stomach as he saw the man's fingertips were dirty, scabby and ragged. That was not the worst of it. Even in the dim light of the club, Lydon could see the man had a deep sore in the curve of his elbow. It had a green scab that was weeping, and the angry color spiderwebbed from the site. That was enough to make the famished young man lose his appetite, and almost lose the food he'd just consumed.
"Watch out for bugs! There's bugs everywhere, Lex Luthor sent them to destroy the club." Superman took Lydon's fork and he tried to carve out bugs from the table. Lydon looked strangely at Carerra.
"Honey maybe you need to go back to your Fortress of solitude so you can soak up some of that Superman energy. Maybe I will call you a cab. What do you say?" Superman had already started mumbling to himself, following invisible bugs through the front doors. Carerra hurried after him and put him in a waiting cab, assuring his elderly friend got to a place where his septic wound would be taken care of. "Can you guess why I wanted you to meet him?"
"Yes."
"That is why we say no glass. No grass, either. You wouldn't want to ruin your figure with all the Doritos you'd be wanting to eat when you are stoned. And watch it on the booze or you'll drink our profits. Besides, you gotta earn your keep around here."
Lydon counted himself lucky that he didn't seem to be affected to the extent that Wickham was when he went without smoking. He has not required long to sleep it off. It had been days and he was feeling better and better- he realized that the extent of his urges must have been less. He didn't know what it meant- why he wasn't like Wickham or Superman. He was just thankful that he was ok without the stuff. He kind of liked being clear and thought he'd stay that way from now on. No hard partying anymore.
" Andale! Vamos!" Carerra playfully swatted Lydon on the bum, urging him back to work and out of his musings. As the night wore on Lydon, who worked hard on the farm, felt like he had never worked harder in his life.
He spend the next few nights in such a manner. He liked feeling part of this community but the work was hard and not to his liking. He was only motivated by earning his room and board. Lydon had been looking forward to the particular way he could contribute to the club, and counted down the days until he would no longer be a server, and instead be riding the mechanical bull and teaching eager patrons the same. However, before the club's ride em' cowboy night, Lydon's plans were changed.
Fine for Now
Jane retrieved Lizzy minutes later, saying that her father wanted to see them in his study. He had his laptop out, and there was a flyer with Lydon's image in full rodeo regalia. It announced: Ride 'Em, Cowboy Night at Brighton's, with lessons from Authentic Rodeo Bronc Buster Jake Heath.
Their father handed a printout for Lizzy to read. "It's a contract for Lydon. He's working at Brighton's! But how?"
"Read on, Lizzy," her father urged.
"The contract has him working there for the rest of the summer?" She regarded her father, "But don't you have to approve since he is only 17?"
"Read on, Lizzy." He made a flicking motion for her to continue.
She silently read the screen and knit her brows. "He actually has the gall to ASK YOUR APPROVAL for him to stay there? When he ran away?"
Her father scrolled down further. "Read this, Lizzy."
"Dear Mr. and Mrs. Bennet,
I send you my sincerest greetings and wishes that you will be comforted when you learn of your dear son's well being. I am grieved and shocked that he would lie to me about not only his age but also his identity. Worse, he also lied to me about your abject disapproval of his lifestyle. Although, apparently, this had more to do with that dog, Wickham's lies. I knew he was trash and I am sorry to say, I had no idea the extent to which he had influenced your son."
Lizzy snorted-"Well that's an understatement!"
"Read on Lizzy."
"However, one of his influences has at least led your son into better hands. He has been safe and sound, working very hard here in our club. While such a place may not be the best environment for most young men, you can be assured that my partner and I have kept him under close watch. I am happy to say that he has benefited from our influence." With this she looked up in puzzlement.
"I must admit they are nice men." Her father only arched his eyebrows at Jane's clear assertion that she'd met them before.
Lizzy, shaking her head, continued to read: "I can see you have raised a hard worker and he is very good at what he does, namely, charming the patrons and being a most excellent teacher, giving mechanical bull riding and western dance lessons.
"It has been good for business, and, if I may, good for your son's self esteem. He benefits greatly by seeing examples of people such as my esteemed partner and myself, as well as our community, who has welcomed him warmly. He may not have given his name and age, but his true character is known to us and we dearly love him.
While I understand that Lydon is likely to be grounded and under lock and key, I would propose that he might be better disciplined in an environment such as Brigthon's where he has been forced to work very hard for his room and board, and make his own way. My partner and I would be happy to meet with you, Lydon, and anyone else in your circle, to discuss how to proceed. We would gladly enforce any sort of discipline you see fit while he stays here for the summer."
"I don't know what to say! How did this come about? I daresay that eventually one of our circle would have recognized Lydon at that club, if he has truly been working there." Lizzy noticed her sister ducking her head at this and wondered what she had to do with the Gardiner's friend, how this friend helped.
Edward looked shrewdly at his daughters as he spoke, "Gardiner's friend went into the club last night and befriended Lydon. It wasn't easy, I assure you, not with those two keeping him under such close supervision. But our champion came through and Lydon had breakfast with him the next morning. After Lydon realized that Wickham had done the same thing to this young man, he agreed to come clean. I would have loved to have seen the expressions on those men's faces when they realized the man who'd been serving drinks was underage!"
Lizzy's eyes grew wide, "Dad! They're nice men and don't deserve to be put out of business by someone else's foolhardiness!"
Edward's tone had taken on his usual, sardonic quality. "But they aren't going to be, are they? Now, with my consent it will be better for business, Lydon can finally put all that energy to better use, and it all can be arranged with little inconvenience to his family."
Lizzy shook her head in disbelief, "Surely you aren't going to allow it!"
"Allow it? Who said anything about allowing it? If he wants to, Lydon can become an emancipated youth, and can make all kinds of allegations, true or not, about his family in order to get what he wants! If he wants so badly to be out in the real world, so be it!"
"Aren't you at least going to meet with the club owners and find some way to discipline Lydon?" Lizzy asked.
"Yes, yes," Edward waved his hand dismissively. "The friend suggested as much, also, when we spoke. I suppose I must."
Jane finally spoke, "I have a suggestion. Make him save the money he earns and first pay back Kitty then put the rest back into his account."
Lizzy nodded, "I agree with Jane, and also that you take up the club owners' offer of supervision. Tell them to not let Lydon go out without them for the summer, either. If they want him so badly, they can enforce his grounding. To keep him occupied, you can hire a tutor for him there, since he flunked out of most of his classes last semester."
"What did you know of that?"
"I may have been sick, Dad, but I wasn't dead. Even I could tell he was skipping".
Jane wasn't finished, "And another thing, Dad, why don't you have him go to El Camino Real Alternative High when he comes back in the fall?"
"Well, would you girls like to go to El Paso in my stead, also?"
"No, dad, I think it's about time you stood on your own two feet." Jane had given her last suggestion. With that Jane and Elizabeth left the study. Other family members were informed in a less dramatic fashion than the eldest Bennet sisters. However, Lizzy perceived the Gardiners and Bingley were unsurprised at this turn of events.
PPPxoxNMxoxPPP
After making a call to arrange a meeting in El Paso, Edward went in and roused Francesca. Soon after an ear piercing shriek of joy could be heard, after which were exclamations of their famous son the bronc buster, and how the flyer didn't put in his name right, and how he'd be rich with all those rich gay men tipping him, and then wondering why gay men would be so interested in rodeoing and western dancing anyway. The unwilling recipients of this information rolled their eyes at Francesca's ridiculousness.
Now that Francesca was awake again, and had heard her son's 'good news' she went on effusing on his fame and that he was going to be famous 'just like all those other gays.' Everyone tried to shush her, correct her, but Francesca would have none of it, insisting that people needed to be open about being gay, that was the reason Lydon left after all was that no one accepted her poor boy, and NO she would NOT stop talking about how proud she was of her gay son. She even left Collins speechless.
After making arrangements, Edward and Gardiner drove to El Paso. Soon after, Bingley announced he had some work to do, and that he was going to use the studio on campus. Francesca was already calling all her friends bragging that her son was a 'famous gay icon like Ru Paul'. With Tia, Mary and Kitty having everything under control on the home front, Lizzy and Jane decided to use their time creatively as well. Not to mention, they were happy to get away from their mother's crass enthusiasm.
Lizzy almost felt as if no secrets were between them again, as she and Jane settled in at their old haunt, the Costume Shop. Maeve gave Lizzy a key when she'd been hired at the shop, and she could come in and use it, so long as she was responsible with upkeep and cleanup. Jane agreed to help Lizzy work on her Primavera sewing project. It felt good to get back to her project, but she labored harder, trying to integrate events of the past week into her work. The work came about as a result of it. Now it would evolve as a result of it.
Well, where did you think Lydon was? Were you surprised? How do you like his 2 new mentors? And who do you think the 'friend' was?
