The Hospice Opening Part II
As the majority of the crowd assembled in front of the hospice applauded the unveiled sign, one man stood in stunned silence. Had the sign in question not been in his direct line of sight, then he might have been able to assume that he had misheard what the Vice President had just said. From the day that the idea had been mooted to have the hospice built in Seth's memory, it had been called the Seth Kennedy Memorial Hospice, and had been so in all of the discussions, the plans, the budgets. Now Skylar saw his own surname up there, and in his mind, that was not right at all. The sign also indicated that there had been discussions taking place behind his back; conversations to which he, Seth's best friend, had not been party to…
He looked to his wife first of all, and to his enormous relief, he saw that she was every bit as shocked; she was no actor, her face a window on her emotions at all times, so she had not been aware that this moment was coming. However, once glance at the Warblers, his friends, let him know that they had all known that this was going to happen; as he stared at them, he saw that some of them looked away, unable to meet his gaze as they saw the look on his face. He knew that there would have to be a conversation, a heated one, with all of them, but right now, he didn't even have the words to express the outrage and anger that he felt towards each and every one of those complicit in this change…
He took a breath, and turned to talk to the Obamas again, to thank them in the briefest of words, and then, as soon as they turned to talk to someone else, he headed inside the building as quickly as he could, before any of the traitors he had thought of as friends could approach him. The second sign inside the building was naturally the first thing that he saw, and that made things all the more unsettling for him. He headed for the reception desk, leaning on it for support, but that made it worse again, as he saw the headed notepaper that the same member of staff who had unveiled the internal sign had brought out. Beside that pile was a sheet that bore a signature that added yet another angle to the betrayal - Hayden too had known. He heard the sound of footsteps behind him then, and he ran for the back entrance, to go and hide in the leafy gardens…
Outside, the alumni now stood in a huddle, worried now that they had made a huge error as some had expected. It was obvious to them that Julia certainly thought so, as she had been seen talking to Thad in whispers, but with a great deal of finger pointing as well as a red face. They had sent Colin in search of Skylar as soon as they saw him bolt from the stage, Edward at his side, but they returned empty handed, and concerned. "I don't think that he is even in the building now, unless he is hiding away somewhere," Colin said in an anguished voice, his eyes watering as he contemplated what had just happened. "One of the doors out into the gardens was ajar, and they were all supposed to be locked."
"So we need to search the garden in pairs until we find him," said Trent, his logical mind taking all control.
"From the expression on his face, and the speed at which he was moving, I doubt that he is even in the gardens now," remarked Beats.
"I think that we have to accept that we made a major error in not consulting him over the name change," stated Sebastian. "In hindsight, it was a stupid thing to do, and we always risked this scenario…"
"Alas, it is too late to change things now. What is done, is done, and we now need to try and fix the damage we have done," replied Nick, earning himself nods of agreement.
"That is not going to be an easy fix, given that Skylar has done a disappearing act and can't even look at us," sighed Flint.
At that moment, Thad came over to join them, and they all waited in anticipation for the Head Warbler to speak. "Well, that was an interesting conversation. Julia wanted me to know that I, and indeed all of you, are insensitive, moronic, uncaring and awful human beings, to put it politely. At one point, I fully expected that she was going to start punching me, and had it not been for the presence of so many dignitaries, she probably would have done. Then, she allowed me to explain why we did it, and well, she understood our motivation behind it; even likes it. She offered to try and talk to him on our behalf, but I told her that it wasn't something I wished her to do. We have potentially destroyed our friendship with Skylar; we don't want to wreck their marriage too."
"I don't think that you have destroyed your friendship, nor will it be necessary to have someone intervene," came a familiar voice, and they all turned to look at Wes, bowing their heads a little in shame. "The best person to talk to him at this moment is already on his way to do just that. If there is anyone that can get him to accept all of this, and to calm down, it is Seth himself…"
Seth, of course, knew exactly where he would find his best friend. He chose however not to materialise there, afraid that in his fragile state, Skylar might even run away from him. So he made his way on foot back to the bench they had been sitting on earlier, hidden from sight amongst all of the mature shrubs. Sure enough, his friend was sitting there, staring out towards the river, and Seth's heart broke as he saw the tear tracks on his friend's face. He sat down next to him, not speaking, not even sure that his friend was aware of his presence…
"I'm sorry," were the first words that Skylar spoke after a few minutes of silence.
The angel sighed, and said, "What do you have to be sorry for? This place is so perfect and beautiful. It is the ideal facility for people that find themselves in the situation that I was in, but who lack the supportive friends that I was blessed with, or family that is able to cope with all of the heartbreak and pain."
"Friends?" scoffed Skylar. "Friends do not do what those people just did. This place was built as your memorial, not mine! My name should be nowhere near it. If they had had the decency to ask me, then I would have told them so in no uncertain terms. Are they all so stupid not to even question the idea when it came up, or to suggest that I should be asked? Do none of them know me at all, because if they did, they would know I would never have agreed to this! I can never forgive any of those involved in this for the betrayal. They are dead to me…."
"That is sad, but if that is how you feel… You can't forgive anyone that even had a small part in the process of changing the name?"
"No, and I never will. It hurts too much to even think that they could be so callous to your memory."
"Well, I am sorry that you feel that way, because I will miss you…"
Skylar's head spun round and he looked at Seth with fear now on his face. "The truth is Sky that I knew what was planned. They told me, and honestly, I loved the idea. I felt that you deserved to be included in the name for all the hard work you did, and for all that you did for me. That the new name was going to be far more comfortable to me than the original Seth Kennedy Memorial one. The fact is that nobody, not even you, asked me if I was happy with that name either…"
Skylar suddenly realised that what his best friend was saying was true, and that he had a very valid point. They had all been so keen to press on with the project, to create what they thought would be a fitting memorial to Seth, that they had not paused to ask what the man himself thought of the idea. As for the original name, it had been his choice and his alone; the first thought that had come into his head. He had never even considered talking to Seth about it. However, by the same token…
"You never said anything to me, all the times we have talked since then. I guess that I assumed from that that you did not have an issue with it!"
"Exactly as we all assumed that you would not have an issue with the name that this building has now officially been given. I think that the name sounds better; in fact, it sounds like one of those big medical clinics, in the Hamptons or somewhere, that all of the celebrities check in to. And then there is the other reason that I prefer it. It keeps my name directly out of the line of fire. My parents still live around here, and they've lost so much because of me. They might well have started a negative publicity campaign against the hospice just because it bears my name…"
Skylar sighed, acknowledging now that his friend had a point. "I guess when I chose the name I just wanted everyone to know how you were, and the dedication would do that. People would ask questions, discover that you had a talent for engineering; such a talent that had things been different, you might well have changed the world with your inventions and achievements."
"We will never know what I could have done, but I do know one thing. The name we have given this building celebrates what I think of as the greatest achievement of my short life; the lasting and eternal friendship I found with a boy that arrived at my school and instantly found himself plunged into danger because of his vocal talents. You were the best roomie I could have asked for, someone who was willing to put his whole life on hold to look after me, if I had let you. The name we chose marks that friendship for ever, and that is something that makes me very happy indeed."
"All I ever really wanted was to make you happy," admitted Skylar.
"Good, because I need you to do something else for me, to make me happier still. I need you to get back in there and forgive the others for not saying anything. They made a mistake but who doesn't? It is part of the nature of all of us to get it wrong from time to time, and that even applies to angels…."
Skylar would sit there for a few more minutes, and then got up, heading back into the building through the back door, passing through corridors that were now filled with visitors. He knew that the Obamas were scheduled to meet the patients that were already there, and their families; a event that would appeal to them, something special for the memory bank. The first person that Skylar walked into was Hayden, who was escorting a group of doctors on a tour, and on seeing the architect, worry appeared on his face. For his part, Skylar smiled and nodded, which was enough to reassure the doctor that there wasn't going to be a scene…
Skylar headed back out to the front of the building, and found that his wife was there, in conversation with his boss, although every so often she would turn to glower at the little knot that his fellow Warblers had formed. He nodded at his boss, and then kissed his wife on the cheek. "I'm sorry, my emotions got the better of me there for a while," he said, addressing them both equally in his statement.
"That is quite understandable in the circumstances," his boss responded. "Julia has been filling me in on exactly why you and Seth were so close. I'm afraid that we never put two and two together when you came to work for us. We knew you had attended Dalton, and had been a Warbler, but we did not realise that you were caught up in the whole Clarington affair…"
"Seth shielded me from the worst of it; suffered bruises and even a broken bone on my behalf. Even then, I did not escape entirely unscathed, physically or mentally."
"There would be some workplaces that would see your involvement, however slight, in such a scandal as a reason to not employ you, or terminate your employment, but not us. In fact, it reassures us that offering you the partnership was exactly the right thing to do. Now, there is the small matter of you actually telling me that you are prepared to accept it…"
Skylar smiled, and replied, "I will, but I will want to give my part of the partner bonus to the funds here each year."
"I would not have expected you to say otherwise, and having seen the place myself, I think that I will be doing the same. The services that are on offer here have been needed for decades. In creating this, you and your friends have marked yourselves as some of the most philanthropic young men I have ever met; the world needs more like you."
"Well, sir, I must let you into a little secret here; one of us is even more philanthropic than the rest. I don't know if I introduced you to Ethan? He just happens to have the surname Mackenzie, and is the head of the a similarly named trust…"
Leaving his boss to digest the news, Skylar took a deep breath, and headed over to the small knot of young men that had been anxiously glancing over for the entire time he had been with his wife and employer. Before he could even open his mouth, Colin spoke. "We should not have sprung all of this on you, and we certainly should have consulted you over the name. All we wanted to do was celebrate what you created here out of love for Seth; to mark the dedication you showed to such a complex project. We misjudged things, and well, we are all truly sorry…"
Skylar sighed, and said, "Yes, you did make a mistake in not telling me, and yes, you made a mistake when you didn't ask me what I thought. However, now that I have had a chat with the other person recalled in the name of this place, I can see why you did it. He also pointed out to me that he was never asked what he thought of the original name either. I chose it, and we all ran with it…"
"We didn't ask him anything, we just made the assumption that he would be okay with it all," said Thad quietly.
"He then went on to say a few other things that made me realise that my initial reaction to all of this was wrong. When I stalked off, I had made my mind up that I was going to walk away from all of you over this. However, then he told me that he had been asked about the new name, and approved, so it would mean walking away from him too, and well, that is not something I could ever do… So yes, it is a very good name, but in these things, consultation is always best. No surprises…"
"We can all agree to that," said Colin, who stepped forward and pulled Skylar into a tight hug, which was reciprocated at once. It would be the first of many…
As those hugs went on, Trent sidled over to where Thad was standing to one side, and whispered, "But we didn't ask Seth what he thought of the new name either, did we? Or did I miss that?"
"No, we didn't, but let us just keep that fact between ourselves, shall we? In fact, shall we say that I asked him, and you were the sole witness?"
Trent nodded solemnly in agreement, knowing the benefit of a white lie… "I just hope that Seth will not get into any sort of trouble for telling Skylar something that wasn't true."
Thad reassured Trent that he would not have done so without having cleared it with those above him, but he was not so certain, and once Trent had sown the seeds of doubt, it started to eat away at him. The last thing he wanted was for Seth to get into bother because he had been forced to mend the rift between his best friend and the rest of the Warbler brotherhood. He tried to see if he could spot any of the other angels to ask them, but they had vanished, and that worried him more. It left him distracted as the ceremonial came towards its close, and the dignitaries headed off, one by one, until the hospice was a quiet as they had intended it to be.
Having escorted the Carmichaels home, Thad headed into his own apartment, and was not surprised in the least to find Wes sitting in the armchair, waiting for him. He took a seat on the sofa across from his husband, and waited for him to speak. "Well, I think that everyone has learnt something valuable today, and that is that secrets are not a good idea, however well intentioned. There is fault on all sides though, with Skylar just as guilty as all of you. However, thanks to some very quick thinking by my assistant, the rift was temporary. I have smoothed things over for him with those above me, as they were not all that happy that he embroiled himself in a lie, however well intentioned. The matter is now closed, here and in the heavenly realms, although I have been cautioned that it can't happen again."
"It won't. From now on, there will be a policy of openness on all issues concerning group matters," replied Thad. "Apart from that, it all went well I thought."
"It did, and this is just the start. There will be other hospices for Skylar to design, as people realise that no matter how luxurious and expensive, a hospital is not a substitute for the love and care of home; a hospice is better. Now, I have a couple of hours free, if you can spare me the time…."
"I can always spare the time for snuggling, Wessie," replied Thad with a smile, and moved to one side of the sofa to allow his husband to join him. Wes did so with a smile, and for the next two hours, their world would entirely revolve around each other…
With the hospice now open, and with a whole lot of good publicity generated, Skylar was now hoping to be able to spend a little private time with his family. He had spent so much of his time over the last few weeks dealing with all of the last minute tasks that a project of that scale generated, on top of being in the office full-time, and that meant he hardly saw Julia and his son. Little Seth was growing up fast, and both Skylar and his wife had decided that they needed to think about giving him a sibling…
In order that he could have that family time, Skylar had booked vacation time for the three weeks after the opening ceremony. He had not had more than a couple of days away from the office in the past year, and those had been for the main holidays, and graduation day at Dalton, of course. Even on those days he had ended up doing some work at home, so now he was intending to relax, unwind and re-engage with the two most important people in his life. He had asked, and been given, exclusive use of the beach house in Port Jefferson; going there allowed them to combine the seaside, the city and a catch up with some of his closest friends away from the hallowed halls of Dalton Academy for a change.
On the second weekend that they would be staying there, they would be joined for a night by Colin, Edward and their son, and Skylar knew full well it would be a reunion filled with talk of all things Warbler. For that reason, he had invited Luke, Duncan and their children to come down as well, to give Julia more company, and to reunite the old housemates for the first time in years. For her part, Julia had already resigned herself to being the outsider that weekend, but it did not bother her in the least. Skylar had insisted that she invite some of her closest friends from her own time in New York to come over for one of the other days during the week, and he would have the same position. They would still have plenty of alone time though, and during that, she was hopeful that they might be able to do something about giving their son a brother or sister…
On the day after the opening ceremony, with everyone back at home, those that lived in the West Village got their first sight of the elusive Miriam, the young lady that had entered Dex's life when he joined the Operatic Society. When the news that he had done so had come out, he had fully expected to be teased with little mercy, but instead he found a lot of understanding, and even a degree of envy. It seemed that he was not the only one of the flock that missed the camaraderie of singing in a group, and all of the joy that it brought too. They all agreed that it was extremely hard, even if they had time available, to find somewhere to join.
Ethan was the one that vocalised those feelings best. "I would love to join a chorus, sing in a like-mined group with other men, much like I did in the Warblers, and I am certain that Drew feels the same way. However, those kind of choirs are not that huge in number, and we lack the correct faith for some, the right sexual preference for others, nor do we have a huge love for Country music, or Gregorian chant!" Those words hit home in the small gathering of friends he uttered them in, and heads nodded in agreement.
He went on, "Of course, then there is the whole issue of time commitment, of being able to be at a rehearsal at the same time each week. My life is so taken up with work, be it my paid job, or the Mackenzie Trust. The latter is about to get even busier now that Skylar has told his boss all about me. There had been an association in Columbus for years in the legal and business communities that is committed to doing good works amongst the less advantaged members of society, and they want to work with us, allow their cash to be spread a little further through joint schemes. The men's refuge program rang a bell amongst them in particular, but they have no idea where to start. It is an entirely new direction for the Trust too, as until now the income has all come from the family business. As a result, the trustees and my parents are looking carefully into the background of all of those involved, before agreeing to an official tie-up. For now, I am tasked with advising them, and pointing them in the direction of experts where I can…"
Of course, those that lived on the street did not actually get to meet Miriam, just see her as Dex walked her up to the house. The day had come when he was ready to introduce her to his brother, and Lawrence was as nervous as his older brother about the whole thing. After some deliberation, the two brothers had concluded that Adam should also be at the meeting, but not until they had made the initial introductions as a small family unit. Dex had told Miriam that his brother was gay, and that he was dating, but had not mentioned that the boyfriend in question was an actor she would most certainly recognise. He did not want to make her more nervous than she already was about being introduced to Dex's only close family…
When the moment finally came, Lawrence had to admit that she was wonderful, all that he could have wished for in a partner for the brother that he no longer felt any animosity towards for his decision to stay with their father when their parents divorced. She was keen to hear all about him, and his life as a medical student, and he could tell that she was asking because she had a genuine interest, not just out of politeness because he was her boyfriend's brother.
He asked about her life too, naturally, and smiled as she talked about her work as a florist. He realised that he walked past the shop in which she worked everyday as he approached the hospital, and had often admired the creative window displays, which he found out were her work. He was also pretty sure that many of the bouquets that were brought into the hospital by visitors would have originated with her.
As the time they had appointed for the arrival of Adam came around, Lawrence changed the topic of conversation to his own love life, and how happy he was that his brother had now found someone that made him as happy as he was. Miriam of course asked about his boyfriend, and he admitted that he was dating an actor, which fascinated her all the more. At that point, the doorbell rang, and Lawrence headed off to answer the door. As he did so, Dex took a seat beside his young lady, and told her that she might actually recognise his brother's partner, as he appeared in a television show…
Of course, she knew who Adam was the moment that he walked in, and after the initial shock and a brief fangirl moment, she remembered to introduce herself, as the two brothers did their best to keep a straight face and not laugh at the reaction. What was clear to both of them was that this was hopefully the start of a long term friendship between the four people in the room, two couples united by blood…