Thank you to everyone for the great reviews, and to Milena for the correction on the correct procedure for mounting a horse! Malinear, I'm sorry I made you late for work but very glad that you liked it!
This is turning out to be a bit longer than I had planned, as the details of family meetings were a bit more complex than I had anticipated! Thank you all for hanging in there! Now, back to work for me!
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Lucas slid into the passenger seat of Sean's car and shut the door. He was quiet, unsure of what he was feeling. He gazed longingly back at the front door; it represented so much to him now. A portal back into a world he hadn't thought could be real, a refuge, a place where he was loved and wanted. He knew then that this would always be his escape, that even when he couldn't physically come here, he could close his eyes and will himself here, getting away from anything and everything that bothered him. He heard Sean open his door and get in. He turned his head and looked at him.
"Good to see you again," Sean said.
"Same to you, have you seen my mother?"
Sean shook his head. "I haven't seen your mother since I picked her up from here. She was pretty down; I think you'll see her again once your family visits are over."
"She had to hold a lot in while she was here."
"Yeah, she did, and I imagine it was harder than I can even conceive of. She was close to her parents."
"She told me she'd come to them later."
"I'm sure she will then. Are you ready?"
"Almost. Tell me what you know about Jennifer and Gary."
"Well, I can tell you honestly that they are nothing like Patrick and Katherine. Jennifer and Gary were the 'cool' parents that bought us beer when we couldn't buy it, bought Gavin guitar lessons when he was 16, and heartily endorsed his getting a tattoo when he turned 18."
Lucas cocked an eyebrow. "A tattoo? He had a tattoo?"
"Yup, he certainly did, though you wouldn't have seen it unless he was wearing something sleeveless."
"What was it?"
"It was a phrase in Tolkein's Elvish tattooed around his upper arm. He wanted one of those tribal ones, but he wanted his to be different, so he made it Elvish script. It was two separate lines."
"Elvish. What a cool idea. I love those books," Lucas said.
"Yeah he did too. As a kid he always wanted to be Aragorn so he could come back and save us all," Sean said, laughing at the memory.
Lucas grinned. "What did it say? What was the translation?"
Sean was quiet for a moment before replying, "Few can foresee whither their road will lead them, till they come to its end."
"Legolas said that if I remember correctly. What a piece of foreshadowing that was."
"You're right, that's where it came from, and if he had only known how true that would be for him, then maybe…"
Lucas blinked hard and looked away. Sean started the car and headed for the road. Lucas was surprised when he turned right instead of left to go back into the city. He looked at Sean questioningly.
"They live a bit farther up the hill. We all lived around here," Sean said, taking note of his confusion. "It isn't far, and we don't have to stay long if you decide not to."
Lucas nodded, but secretly wondered why he said that. In what seemed only a few minutes they were turning into another drive. This house was smaller than the one he'd just come from. It was a single story, surrounded by a manicured lawn and garden.
"Lucas, I have to tell you this, before you meet them. Just because they were cool parents doesn't mean they were good parents. Gavin was an afterthought, and they were more his friends than his parents. In some ways they were a lot like Lawrence and Cynthia turned out to be for you, except not so restrictive. They didn't attend your mother's funeral; they never made any attempts to help Patrick and Katherine get custody of you. I think they blamed your mother for Gavin's death, because they refused to even see her after that."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I think you should know the truth in case their reaction to you isn't a warm one or they don't believe you are who you say you are. I don't want to see you hurt because you don't understand the politics behind it. I hate to say it that way, but it is the truth."
"Sean, how are they going to look at me and say that I'm not his son?"
"I'm just warning you Lucas. Just know that even if Jennifer and Gary don't react in a positive way, you still have Patrick and Katherine. I'll stay with you the whole time. If you want to leave, just let me know okay?"
This disclosure troubled Lucas greatly, and he suddenly wasn't sure if he wanted to meet them at all. Why hadn't they attended Ellie's funeral? Why did they dismiss her after Gavin's death? How could they possibly blame her for what had happened? He realized that he couldn't, and shouldn't, leave without meeting them.
"Okay," he replied, opening the door. Sean stepped out and they both walked up to the front door. Sean rang the bell and it was only seconds before the door was opened.
"Sean!" the woman who answered cried out. "It's been so long!"
"Hi Jennifer, good to see you again. Look, I've got someone here that I thought you should meet," he said, gesturing to Lucas.
Jennifer looked at him and her face went blank. "What is this Sean, some sort of joke?"
"Jennifer, this is your grandson, Lucas."
She started as Sean said Lucas' name. "My god," she whispered. "It's like going back in time and looking at Gavin. Come in, please."
Sean and Lucas stepped inside, Lucas suddenly wishing he was someplace else. "It's nice to finally meet you," Lucas said softly.
She gave him a strange look and walked away, going to the dining room table and sitting down. She gestured for them to sit and they complied.
"So," she began. "How did you come to find out about us?"
"I…uh…" Lucas said, faltering at the coldness of her tone.
"He did a bit of research after some blood tests came back as a mismatch with that of Lawrence and Cynthia," Sean said, trying to help.
"I see, so then you know all about your mother I suppose?"
"Yes and my father too. I'm on leave and I wanted to meet my family…" he got out, before Jennifer interrupted him.
"Hold on Lucas, I want to say this. I know that my son was your father in the technical sense of the word, but he was never your father in any other way, he never got the chance. That was your mother's fault."
"How?" Lucas asked, feeling himself starting to get angry.
"She should never have slept with him. If she had stayed away and been a faithful wife, my son would still be alive," she said simply.
"Now hang on a minute Jennifer…"Sean began, but Lucas stopped him.
"My mother was not at fault for what happened. It takes two people to do what they did, he was just as willing a participant as she was, in fact, from what I know, he was the one who initiated it, but that is beside the point. Whether it should have happened or not isn't the issue and can't even be debated. It happened and there is no undoing it. He would have been a father to me if he'd had a chance, just as she would have been a mother to me if she had been allowed to live."
"All I am trying to say Lucas, is that although we are technically your grandparents, I can't and don't consider you truly my grandchild. I've never met you, never known you in all of this time you've been growing up. Gary will feel the same way. We discussed this, just in case it ever happened. I'm sorry that I can't give you what you want."
"Give me what I want? How do you know what I want? You haven't even bothered to talk to me and find out what I want. All I wanted was to find out where I really came from, who my family really was. Would you give me the time of day if I was his child by another woman? Is it only because Ellie is mother that you've decided to shut me out?"
"Wait here," Jennifer said, standing up and leaving the room.
Lucas was flabbergasted. What in the hell was happening? He hadn't expected this at all, Gavin had been so warm when they'd met.
"Lucas, we can leave, I'm really sorry about this," Sean said.
He nodded silently. "I want to go, she hates her so much I can almost feel it radiating off of her."
Jennifer came back into the room, carrying what looked like a photo album as well as a glass of a watery looking brown substance, which Lucas immediately identified as alcohol from the smell it gave off as she walked by him. His eyes widened and he looked at Sean, who shook his head and looked down at the table.
"Here," Jennifer said, sliding the album across the table. "This was Gavin's. It is a scrapbook type of thing that he made for a class project in college. It will tell you all you need to know about him."
Lucas laid a hand on top of the book. "Thank you," he whispered.
"Jennifer, we're going to go now, give my regards to Gary."
"I will thank you for stopping by Sean."
Sean and Lucas stood, Lucas dazed by this brief exchange. They headed for the door, and Lucas was halfway out when he heard Jennifer call out to Sean.
"Sean!"
"Yes Jennifer?"
"Don't ever bring him here again."
Lucas froze, his heart seeming to stop in his chest at the icy words. He hadn't felt this hurt since being sent to the SeaQuest. He sighed and marched out to the car, opening the door, sliding in, and slamming it shut.
Sean was right behind him. "I'm so sorry Lucas that was way beyond what I even imagined might happen."
"Why does she hate me? She doesn't know me!"
"I don't think she hates you, I think she blames Ellie and anything associated with her is the enemy."
Lucas sighed heavily. His heart ached, he had hoped for so much more than this. "She was drinking."
"Yes, she and Gary both sank into it after Gavin's death. They aren't the same people they used to be. The old Jennifer and Gary would have welcomed you with open arms. I don't even know these people anymore. The drinking has destroyed them."
"Take me back home please," Lucas said tightly.
"Back to the hotel?"
"No, home. Home to my grandparents, the ones who like me. I don't want to end it like this, I want one more night with them."
Sean nodded, started the car, and headed back down the road.