Dallas woke alone in his bed the next morning. He and Nate had fallen asleep wrapped in one another’s arms, but he had the foggy memory of Nate kissing his cheek before the bed went cold. The morning light was bright outside and a glance at Dallas’ phone told him he’d slept through his alarm.

“As if I could go to school today,” he groaned. “I’ll ask Rosalie to call me in sick.”

He stumbled out of his room and after a quick trip to the bathroom, he went down to the kitchen. Rosalie was there, making pancakes at the stove while Rico played with action figures at the table.

“Where’s…” Dallas started to ask, but Rico piped up.

“Daddy drove Nate to his grandma’s house last night,” he said. “I didn’t get to say goodbye!”

“Neither did I,” Dallas said sadly, but then Rosalie caught his eye and she smiled knowingly, making him blush.

“I already called the school to let them know you aren’t going today,” she said. “You and Rico are staying home.”

“Can we go to the pool?” Rico asked hopefully.

“Nope, you’re going to help me clean the bathrooms,” Rosalie said. “But if we finish early, you can play in the sprinkler in the yard.”

Rico made a face, but he didn’t protest. He pushed the maple syrup towards Dallas as his older brother sat down and started eating his pancakes. Dallas ruffled the boy’s hair.

“What was that for?” Rico demanded.

“Because you’ve got a big mouth,” Dallas replied, but then he kissed his brother’s sticky cheek. “I hope you don’t change either, Rico.”

Rico was baffled by the sudden affection, but he took the opportunity now that he had Dallas’ attention to explain all of his action figures’ superpowers (Dallas already knew them, but that didn’t matter). Dallas finished his breakfast and rinsed off his plate.

“Is Dad home?” he asked Rosalie.

She shook her head. “He should be back soon, though. He dropped Nate off safely and spoke with his friend who is going to be taking over Nate’s legal representation. We both thought it was best if he weren’t directly involved with the case now that Nate is safely out of town.”

Her brow wrinkled as she said this and Dallas frowned.

“Are you afraid someone’s going to blame us for this?” he asked.

Rosalie shrugged. “Who knows? Rob just said it was better for the focus of the town to be on the Westersons and that would be easier if he wasn’t the one representing Nate. Your dad wants to talk to you after he gets home, so I expect he’ll explain everything. Don’t worry mijo, Nate is in good hands. Rob’s friend Avery agreed to take the case.”

“Isn’t Avery the one who broke his foot trying to make spaghetti for his girlfriend?” Dallas asked, thinking back through his dad’s law school stories.

“Yes,” Rosalie agreed. “But just because he’s a bad cook doesn’t mean he isn’t a good lawyer.”

Dallas couldn’t argue against this, so he went upstairs to shower and get dressed. He grinned as he made his bed, thinking about how Nate felt in his arms the night before, and he touched his lips with a gentle finger. He could almost taste the memory of Nate’s lips against his. 

There was the sound of a car door closing outside and Dallas glanced out to see his dad walking towards the house. He hurried downstairs in time to see Rob give Rosalie a kiss (again, Dallas flushed at his own memories). Rob glanced at the stairs and spotted him, then grinned.

“Good morning, kiddo,” he said. “Nate’s safely away and his grandmother is a wonderful lady. He’s going to be OK.”

Dallas let out a sigh of relief he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in. Rob gestured towards the home office. 

“Come on, let’s have a chat while I’ve still got the energy,” he said. Dallas followed after him. Rob sat on the chair behind the desk and pointed for Dallas to sit in the one beside him.

“How are you holding up, Dallas?” his dad asked first.

Dallas shrugged. “Fine, I guess. I wish Nate didn’t have to go, but I’m glad he’s safe. I’m going to miss him.”

He tried not to let his lingering sadness creep into his voice, but he must’ve not done a very good job because Rob took one of his hands into his.

“I understand, son,” he said. “I know Nate is very important to you.”

Dallas couldn’t help the blush, nor the nervous tightening of his stomach, as he wondered if his father knew the truth of his affection for Nate. He’d never talked to Rob about his sexuality before because, honestly, he hadn’t ever had any inclinations for anyone before Nate. Dallas knew his father loved him and he’d always supported him before, but the memory of Nate’s bruises reminded him that there was something to be feared.

“Did…did Rico or Rosalie tell you?” Dallas asked slowly.

Rob raised an eyebrow. “Tell me what?”

“That…” Dallas took a breath, “…that I’m in love with Nate.”

Rob laughed. “Oh, so Rico knows too? Not surprising, given the way you two looked at one another. I guessed as much for myself. And if I hadn’t any suspicions before, there was no doubt after seeing the way you two were wrapped around one another last night when I went to fetch Nate from your room.”

Dallas blushed again. “…And that’s alright with you?”

Rob stopped laughing and placed his hands on Dallas’ shoulders.

“Dallas,” he said seriously, “All I want from the person you end up with is that you love them and they love you equally in return. I love you and I’m proud of the young man you’ve become. I am so lucky to be your father, son...from the day of your birth, you have been one of the most important things in my life!”

With this, Rob pulled Dallas into a hug and Dallas had to wipe away tears. He heard his dad sniff too before he released his grip.

“All right, enough of that sappy stuff, let’s get to business,” Rob said, grabbing a box of tissues from a shelf. “First, I wanted to tell you that it looks like Nate’s grandmother is going to be granted permanent custody of him until he turns eighteen. Deputy Nelson got a search warrant for the Westersons’ house and found the stick Nate told us about. After that the Reverend basically broke down and admitted everything. The sheriff’s office is charging both parents with child endangerment and abuse, and I expect they’re going to plead guilty.”

“So Nate’s parents are going to jail?” Dallas asked, amazed.

Rob frowned. “Probably, but I don’t think it’ll be much jail time. They might only have to pay a fine or do community service, depending on how severely the courts charge them. Public opinion in Cooper’s Creek is still in the Reverend's favor, plus I think the Westersons are shrewd enough to spin this whole scandal as a ‘love the sinner, hate the sin’ scenario. Even if the Reverend ends up going to jail, he’ll probably come out of it claiming to be ‘changed man’ and the church folk will gobble it up. Who knows? Maybe he WILL change his mind after some time in jail. But he’ll never get his son back, which is what’s most important to me.”

Dallas nodded.

“How did you know he was hitting Nate?” he asked.

Rob sighed heavily.

“Like I said before, I didn’t know,” he answered. “But I suspected the Reverend was doing something. It’s a sense I’ve developed over the years as a lawyer - you see enough people breaking the law and eventually you can tell when someone’s doing something wrong from their behavior. A year or two ago I had to interview Reverend Westerson about some account discrepancies for a business related to the church and even though I couldn't prove he wasn’t involved in that scam, something about his nervous manner made me suspicious that he was doing something the law wouldn’t approve of. When Rosalie told me about how thin Nate was and that he was nervous around adults, I started to put it together. The Reverend probably guessed I suspected he was hurting his son, but he couldn’t tell Nate to suddenly stop talking to you because then I’d definitely get myself involved. I regret that I didn’t act sooner, but I also trusted that Nate would come to us when he needed us most and I made sure to be ready for that eventuality.”

Despite everything, Dallas smiled.

“You’re really cool, Dad,” he said.

“If that was true, you’d laugh more at my jokes,” Rob replied; but Dallas could tell he was pleased.

“All that being said, this affair is probably going to take some time to wrap up completely,” Rob continued after a minute. “I already told Nate this, but I need to tell you too: you two can’t contact one another until after the courts settle everything or you both come of age. In fact, it’s best if Nate doesn’t have contact with anyone from Cooper’s Creek, including me. Avery – you remember my friend Avery? He broke his leg making spaghetti? Well, he agreed to be Nate’s lawyer and he’s going to keep me up to date with the developments, but I can’t have an active hand in the matter. It may affect the outcome of any trial, plus it might complicate our lives here in town.”

Dallas felt that rising dread in the pit of his stomach.

“Rosalie said something about that,” he said.

Rob nodded. “We’ve talked about it and we both agreed that it may be best if we move out of Cooper’s Creek in the next year or so. Actually…” Here he paused and looked a little sheepish before continuing, “…We want to have another baby. Rosalie thinks Rico needs a younger sibling to learn some responsibility. Or at least, we hope that if he has to watch out for someone else, he’ll be too busy to talk to strangers all the time. Would you mind if there was another kid around?”

Dallas grinned. “Not at all. I’m pretty good with babies and I don’t mind helping out with another one. Do I get to eat cake off your belly now?”

“Yeah, I figured you’d say that,” his dad chuckled. “But Rosalie and I don’t want you to be the only one responsible for helping with Rico and the new baby. You deserve a life of your own, Dallas, and we want to give you time to do that. So we’re thinking of moving to the same town as Rosalie’s sister – that way there will more people around to lend a hand when needed. Marjorie and Alejo have already pointed out a couple of affordable houses for sale and I'm going to try working from home more often to avoid commuting. Plus, their town has an annual Pride festival that’s hosted by several local community groups, so it seems like an environment that we want to raise our children in.”

Dallas nodded; he was that touched his parents were thinking of him so much even as they made plans for another child.

“I wouldn’t care if we moved away,” he replied. “My only reason for staying in this town is gone, so the sooner we can get out of Cooper’s Creek, the better.”

Rob patted his shoulder.

“I agree,” he said. “And that brings up the issue of your schooling. We both know you hate school and there’s really no point in you continuing when we already know where you’re headed. I was thinking: would you be interested in leaving high school early and earn a GED instead? The trade school that Mr. Brown recommended accepts GED’s and I’m pretty sure Mr. Brown would write to them on your behalf if you were to apply without a high school diploma. Sixteen-year-olds can take the GED with a parent’s permission, so you could take the test within the next year and then enroll early in the mechanic program to get started on trade school. Rosalie says she’d help you study for the GED if you want to pursue this path instead of finishing high school.”

Dallas wasn’t sure if he understood this.

“You mean,” he asked slowly, “I wouldn’t have to go back to high school if I took the test? And I’d still be able to become a mechanic?”

Rob nodded. “That’s exactly it. I’d rather you have the chance to start building your career and making money for whatever…or whoever…your future holds.”

Dallas felt as though electricity was running over his skin as he thought about this. If he could start working as a mechanic sooner, maybe by the time he was eighteen he'd have enough money to visit Nate…or even afford for them to live together! It was still too far away to be anything more than a dream and who knew if Nate would still want him when the time came, but Dallas was happy he’d have a goal to work towards during their time apart.

“Yeah, I like that plan,” he told his dad. “I want to do it!”

Rob sighed with relief. 

“Good,” he said. “Rosalie and I will contact your school next week and make arrangements. Just to warn you, Rosie’s not going to go easy on you – you might wish you had that hellion Mrs. Hozicki instead.”

“I’d never choose Hozicki over Rosalie,” Dallas declared, but he knew his dad was kidding. Then he leaned over and hugged Rob again.

“Thank you Dad,” he said. “I’m really lucky to have you for a father.”

“Damn straight,” Rob replied as he patted Dallas’ back. “Now, I declare this meeting adjourned and I’m going to bed. I’m getting too old for all-nighters…did I ever tell you about the time that Avery and I almost got banned from the law school’s library when we tried to turn one of the storage closets into a poker den?”

“Yes, but you can tell me again,” Dallas said as they left the office.