Knock knock
"Who is it?"
"I- it's me. Brent..."
"You may come in."
creeee-EEEEK
"How are you doing now?"
Manny shrugged, "Okay I guess... I opened that package. Turns out what was inside isn't all that bad."
He tossed a stuffed animal in the form of a multicolored elephant at Brent, and the blond turned it over in his hands- studying it.
"The damn thing was one of the few items that would bring me comfort as a child. That, plus these-"
Manny placed three small, hand-made dolls in the palm of Brent's hand, "They're called Guatemalan Worry Dolls, Trouble Dolls or, in Spanish, Muñeca quitapena. Legend has it that, if a child tells their worries to the doll and places them under their pillow, the doll will have gifted them with the knowledge and wisdom to eliminate their worries."
Brent handed the stuffed animal back to him, and he clutched onto it- tucking his legs into his chest, and slowly rocking to and fro, "It just doesn't make any sense why they're sending me this stuff..."
"... I know you said you hate them, but do you truly believe that they hate you? I mean... trans or not, you're still their child. Maybe this is their way of apologizing to you..."
"... Maybe... I do have to give them credit for sending me this rather than something that could be considered feminine but, if they really wanted to apologize, they would have used my preferred- let alone- legal name."
Manny inhaled, and slowly exhaled, "There was a time that I did love my mom and dad, Brent... And, deep down, a very small part of me still does. After all, they created me, fed me, clothed me, provided me with warmth and shelter, sent me to school so I could be educated... Just things any normal parent would do to raise their child. But... things changed when I was eight to thirteen years old... That's when I started to discover who I was as well as my sexuality or, rather, a slight lack there of."
His face flushed a bright pink as well as Brent's, and he averted his gaze.
"O- oh! So, erm, what are you then?"
"I'm a lithromantic demisexual. So on both the aromantic and asexual spectrums. Though I'm attracted to men over women."
Before Manny turned back to face him, Brent smiled gently half to himself, "Just thought I'd check in on you before you went to sleep. Do you need anything?"
"I'm not going to sleep for a while actually, but... I wouldn't mind your company until then."
Manny grabbed the remote for his mounted, flatscreen TV, and winked, "Wanna watch a movie?"
Brent grinned, and his eyes even sparkled, "You know it! Don't start it yet, though. Imma go grab us some snacks."
"Is my leftover Gorilla Stew one of them...?"
There was a plea in Manny's voice, and Brent nodded, "Sure thing, buddy. Sure thing."