Jerry's Heart Pt. 03

Part 3 -- Marshall meets the family and draws closer to Jerry
"So what are we doing for the Fourth?" Marshall asked as he and Jerry made dinner at his Cape Cod for everyone that Monday night. "Winnie's working but we can have a barbecue at my house and she'll come by later."
The couple had settled into a routine together over the last few weeks: Dinner on Monday nights at Marshall's house, Friday nights at Jerry's house, and they have dinner without the kids on Wednesday nights after group. Tuesdays and Thursdays were reserved for individual time with their children and on the weekends they alternate, depending on Marshall's work schedule and Oliver and Randall's weekends with his in-laws. Independence Day fell on a Wednesday so Jerry and Cody cancelled BASE that next week.
Jerry stalled. "Um..." He sighed. "It's Randy's birthday so we typically have a barbecue at the house with Randy's family and then at 7:04 on the dot, the time of his birth, we burst out the fireworks in his honor. It's what he did when he was alive so we just kept doing it. And it's the only time we come together to celebrate his life, not mourn his death."
"Oh, okay." Marshall paused then said, "I understand if it's just for family."
"Oh! Yeah, um... do you want to come?"
"Not if it's going to make you uncomfortable," Marshall said with an eyebrow raised.
"No I..." But Jerry didn't finish his thought out loud. Truthfully he wasn't sure how he would feel.
Marshall of course finished his thought, moving his hands around as he talked and avoiding Jerry's eyes. "It's going to be all of Randall's family there, right? So I don't know how you feel about bringing your boyfriend to your dead husband's memorial celebration. They probably don't even know I exist so it would be a shock with me just showing up there."
"They know you exist," Jerry said. Marshall looked at him. "Jo knows. Jo and Micah know that we're more than friends now. I told Jo four weeks ago when we got back from A.C. Tiffany, Randy's sister, knows because Cassie told her. So it's safe to assume that his parents know too. So no, you're not some big secret."
Marshall nodded. "Okay. And I'm glad about that. But still, I don't want to make you uncomfortable."
Jerry came over to him and wrapped him up in his arms. Marshall leaned into his shoulder like he always does, closed his eyes and breathed in his scent. They held each other in silence for a minute, then Jerry said, "Please come. I want you there. We start at 4 o'clock."
"Okay. We'll be there."
They continued to hold each other until Oliver came into the kitchen saying, "Gross, dudes. Can we eat now?"
They pulled apart with smiles and then Marshall grabbed a few of the grape tomatoes he planned to add to the salad and started throwing them at Oliver instead, who was laughing and running away.
* * * * *
Jerry was nervous as he and Jo pushed the tables together for the outdoor picnic in the field behind the house. There were 25 people in total coming so they had to rent six long tables, four for the adults, one for the children and one for the food. He kept tripping over the grass that wasn't high enough to make him trip and banged his knee twice, thinking about the conversation he had just an hour earlier.
When Randy's parents Theresa and Stewart arrived, he pulled them aside and told them first. "So I just wanted you to know... that I invited... a friend... today. I hope that's okay."
Theresa and Stewart exchanged looks, then she turned to him and asked, "Would this be the friend with two children that our grandchildren are always talking about?"
"Yeah, Booger and Beachy?" Stew asked.
Jerry smiled. "Boogie and Breezy. That's not their real names of course. Memphis is twelve and Freya is seven. And their dad's name is Marshall."
"That's right. Marshall. They talk about him a lot too," Stewart said with a smile.
"I just want to make sure it's okay that they come for the celebration."
"Well it's your house honey, you can invite who you want," Theresa said nonchalantly.
"Yeah but..." He sighed a bit.
Theresa spoke, "We're looking forward to meeting him. All of them." She kissed Jerry on his cheek and began to open up the coverings for the side dishes they were having. Stew smiled at him knowingly and went into the living room to watch TV.
The conversation with Randy's parents just made Jerry feel more nervous, as they have been more parents to him in the last 19 years than his own father. Suddenly it became less about Marshall coming for Randy's birthday memorial with Randy's family, and more about Marshall meeting the people he considers family.
"You okay, man?" Jo asked him, taking him out of his thoughts. "You seem a little distracted today."
"Hmm? Yeah, yeah, I'm good. I'm..." He sighed and sat on one of the tables. "Jo? How did you feel when you invited Micah for Thanksgiving that first year? To meet your parents?"
"Oh." Jo came kıbrıs escort over and sat on the table next to him. "Worried. Micah is...one of a kind."
Jerry scoffed in amusement. "That's one way of putting it."
Jo chuckled. "I was worried how my mother was going to receive him. I told her I was dating a femme man, but didn't tell her how femme he was. Sometimes he could be overly dramatic and I was nervous he was going to be very Micah that day and my mother wouldn't get him the way I do. But I realized before we got there how nervous he was, to the point that he wasn't Micah at all, trying to be something he wasn't. I definitely did not want that. So I asked Randy to make him feel comfortable without me being around, to help ease some of his worries. I needed to put my own worries aside to help ease his."
Jerry nodded in understanding. "Marshall is going to be nervous. Can you help me make him feel more comfortable around everyone?"
"Of course. I'll get Micah on it, he's better at things like this than I am," Jo said with a pat on his back. "So, it's good then? You and him crossing the line of friendship?"
"It's..." Jerry had so many words but couldn't get one out. He just blew out air and smiled, his cheeks getting pink.
"That good, huh?" Jo said with a smile of his own.
Jerry looked down and nodded, still smiling. "That good," he said quietly.
"Hmmm..." Jo responded, patted Jerry's back again. "Good." They resumed putting the tables together as Jo's parents, Mary and Francis, came into the field holding onto trays of food.
At a quarter to four, Marshall arrived with his children and Winnie, who was able to switch shifts with someone else when she found out where Marshall was going for the holiday. She wanted to be there for her brother because she knew he would be nervous coming into Jerry's family celebration that would be more of Randy's family. Boogie and Breezy already took off running as soon as the car stopped.
Breezy found Jerry first, hugging his leg and making him turn around. "Hey Breezy!" He lifted her up happily for a hug, then put her down. "Where's your dad?"
"Coming!" she yelled on her way to the little backyard playset that Randall was encouraging her to come on with frantic waving. Marshall and Winnie were already walking toward the tables with foil trays in their hands.
Jerry walked up to him with a smile on his face. "Hey you," he said softly.
"Hey you," Marshall answered back. He handed over the tray of grilled fish and roasted peppers that he made earlier from his own grill.
"This smells amazing," Jerry said.
"Yeah, I figured I should bring-"
But Jerry cut him off with a kiss to his lips, letting it linger there, completely surprising him. "Hmmm," he moaned, closed his eyes and kissed him back, nipping at his bottom lip. Jerry leaned up and smiled at him again.
"Okay. Got it," Marshall said with a nod. He assumed that they would dance around each other today but the kiss made it clear that Jerry was not going to be obscure about their relationship. He didn't know if that made him feel less nervous or more.
Winnie spoke sarcastically, "I'm here too! In case you wanted to know." They smiled at her as she put her smaller tray of corn on the cob on Marshall's tray that Jerry was holding, and walked on.
"Good to see you, Winnie," Jerry called after her. She waved her arm behind her and kept going. Jerry held out his free hand and Marshall took it, and they walked to the gathering together.
He introduced Marshall and Winnie to Randy's parents and Jo's parents, Randy's sister Tiffany who was pregnant with her third child and her husband Gary, his niece Erica who invited her boyfriend Will, and his nephews Matt and Brian. Cassie, already familiar with Marshall from the princess party, came over and gave him a big hug, then also hugged Winnie, pulling her away to discuss their younger brothers.
After introductions they waited until Stew and Francis had grilled enough hamburgers, hot dogs and barbecue chicken to go around and everyone settled in their seats with Marshall next to Jerry, and Micah and Jo across from them. He stood up, cleared his throat and everyone hushed. He looked at Marshall before he closed his eyes and began the prayer:
"God, we thank you for bringing us all here together for another year to remember our loved one, Randall Terry Blake, and to honor his life. We thank you for our family that continues to grow, our hearts that continue to heal, and the people that we've brought into our lives that make us happy. We thank you for the food and the hands that have made and blessed it. In your name we pray, Amen."
The group chorused, "Amen."
Then Jerry said, "Let's carpe the hell out of this diem." And suddenly the entire family roared with deafening and excitable screams, hoots and yells, banging on the table, clinking glasses and making a lot of ruckus.
Marshall's eyes went wide with surprise kıbrıs escort bayan and looked up at Jerry who smiled at him. Jerry cupped his hands over his mouth, threw his head back and screamed, "WOOOOOOOO HOOOOOO!"
Marshall laughed out loud, looked around and saw his own kids also screaming at the top of their lungs and Winnie banging on the table next to him enjoying the chaos. He turned back to see Jerry watching him, and Jerry nodded.
"When in Rome," he said quietly to himself, threw two fists in the air and started screaming too, making Jerry laugh. As it died down into laughter, Cassie's youngest son, Brian, started up the music and they began to pass the food around.
Jerry watched Marshall fit right in throughout the meal and afterwards, mingling with Tiffany and her husband Gary, giving Stew and Francis a hand on the grill and talking a long while with Theresa. He saw him laughing heartily with Micah, who indeed was being dramatic about something, both of their hands waving around as they talked. And he didn't know what was said between them, but he witnessed Marshall give Oliver a hug that he didn't pull away from. That made his heart melt.
At 6:30pm he caught Jo's eye and they met in the middle. "Ready?" his cousin asked.
"Yep," he responded.
They went to find Matt and Brian, who just turned 18 and was now allowed to help them. Jerry ran into Marshall who was hanging out with Micah again. "We're going to set up the fireworks. It's almost time. Do you want to stay here or come set them off with us?"
"I'm coming, for sure!" But then he looked up at the sky and said, "Though it's going to be hard to see them, it's still bright outside."
"Oh yeah, we know," said Micah. "We're going to shoot the real ones off later on, around 9 o'clock, but we do this now just for Randy. And when I say 'we' I mean they." He waved his hand back and forth between Jerry and Jo. Then he pressed his hand to his heart and shook his head. "I do not go up there. I help the kids make the balloons that go up."
"Well, as fun as balloon-making sounds, I think I want to make things go boom," Marshall said with a smile.
"Suit yourself, sweetie," he told him with a wink and started walking away.
But Jo gently grabbed his arm and pulled him close, kissing him on the lips. They pressed their lips together a few times, then Micah patted his chest and kept going, purposely switching his hips in his very tight jean shorts and even tighter white t-shirt, knowing Jo was watching him. Jerry and Marshall exchanged smiles over their obvious love and attraction for each other.
"Can we go now?" Brian asked impatiently.
They chuckled and walked about a quarter mile into the field away from everyone else where the explosives were. After they set it up they waited until exactly 7:04pm and began to set them off, 34 loud and colorful bursts of light into the sky. They could hear everyone cheering from the picnic area and they saw the 34 colorful balloons rise in the air. Matt and Brian were happily jumping around screaming "woooooo hoooooo!" after every burst.
Marshall turned and said to Jerry, "I'm having the best time. I don't know what I expected, but nothing like this. I was afraid this would be Randy's family and I was the intruder. But it's not. It's your family. Those are your parents. They love you like their own son. Tiffany is your sister too. Jo is your cousin. This is your family, Jerry."
"And I'm happy that you're a part of it," Jerry said.
Marshall looked at him and leaned in for a simple kiss. Jerry pulled him closer and gently put his tongue in Marshall's mouth and his arms around his waist. Marshall held onto the back of his neck with both hands and they explored each other's mouths unhurried, absentmindedly moving their groins against each other long after the fireworks ended and Jo moved on with his nephews.
Marshall came up for air first, saying, "Stop before something really embarrassing happens."
Jerry leaned his forehead down on Marshall's and began to breathe deeply, slowing down his heartbeat. Marshall did the same until their breathing was in sync. "Stay with me tonight," he said softly. They haven't laid in the same bed since the first time in Atlantic City.
"Okay," Marshall whispered. They began to walk back with arms around their lower backs.
* * * * *
After the official fireworks between 9pm and 10pm everyone started filtering out, Cassie and Eric walking back to their house but their adult children getting in their cars and headed to a party, and Tiffany's family headed home. Jo's parents left shortly after that with Jo's children.
Theresa pulled Jerry aside before they left. She gave him a hug and said, "He's a good catch."
Jerry nodded. "He is. He's a great guy. He's so different from Randy, though."
"I know," she acknowledged. "He's more like you, calm, focused, grounded. He's exactly what you need, a steady love. And he's escort kıbrıs a good father. I watched him with his son and daughter today. I also watched him with Oliver and Randall and I see why they love him too. Like I said, he's a good catch."
"Thanks, Mom," he said with amusement in his voice. She kissed his cheek and made plans to take the children for the day on Sunday.
He walked around to find Jo in the rocking chair on the front porch with Micah in his lap, Marshall and Winnie hugging goodbye at the bottom of the stairs, and Randall and Freya running around the yard with sparklers. "Where are the boys?" he asked.
"They just went inside," Marshall said. "I told them we're staying the night so they went to find clothes for Boogie to wear to bed. Winnie is taking my car home so you'll be my Uber tomorrow; work for me and camp for the kiddos." He handed her his keys and she walked over to Jerry for a hug.
"Walk with me," she said, and Jerry obliged.
She started talking as soon as they were out of earshot. "I have never seen my brother so happy. Even with Brenden, who I loved like a brother too. But Brenden had a lot of issues, I don't know if you knew that."
"He's told me some of it," Jerry confessed.
"Despite the drama in their relationship, they were so happy and had a lot of fun together. They leaned on each other and supported each other, but Brenden leaned on Marshall a little too much. Even before Brenden got sick, Marshall was taking care of him and became a father to his son at 24 years old. When Brenden died, it was like his world was shattered. Leading his family was his whole identity, and with no one to care for in that way, he didn't know what to do with himself. He hid it really well from me, until he couldn't anymore."
She turned to face him as they reached the car. "I'm telling you this because when I... strongly suggested that Marshall started going to your group, I just wanted him to begin to heal. I never expected his heart to become whole again and that's because of you. He's happy with you in a different way than he was with Brenden. It's..."
She looked around for a word. "...effortless. Easy. He's not enmeshed with you because he doesn't need to be. He doesn't have to take care of you. He can just...be with you. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Yeah, I do," Jerry said. "I know what it feels like to be enmeshed with someone that was larger than life."
She nodded. "Anyway, I just wanted you to know that. In case you didn't know how happy he is with you. I don't know if you guys talk about a future together, but just know that I'm rooting for it." She gave him another hug and got into Marshall's car to drive home.
Jerry stood there watching her tail lights fade away thinking about what she said. He too felt the same way, that his feelings for Marshall were so different from Randy, mostly because it was easy and effortless. Jerry loved Randy with a young and wild love that never ceased. But his love for Marshall was grounded in their age and maturity, experiences, friendship and ease around each other.
Marshall always thought about others first, was attentive to everyone's feelings and anticipated moods so he could be proactive. There wasn't a selfish bone in his body. They communicated well and had similar parenting styles. He didn't have to worry about Marshall getting the itch to sleep with someone else. He couldn't foresee a future hardship with him at all. Marshall was the companion he needed.
He turned around to see Marshall had sat on the porch steps still talking with his cousins. He came over to them, sat on the other side of the stairs and put one knee up. Marshall handed him an open beer saying, "I snagged the last one for you. Miller Lite."
Jerry smiled. "Thank you." He took a sip without taking his eyes off him.
"What?" Marshall asked.
"Nothing," Jerry replied.
But they continued to stare at each other sipping their individual beers until they heard Micah sing, "Ooooh somebody is bumping uglies tonight."
Marshall was mid-sip and spit a little beer out in laughter as Jo scolded him, "Micah!"
"Whaaaat? I'm just saying," he said innocently with a wave of his hand. "I was going to ask if you wanted to keep the boys tonight but that would have just killed your viiiiiibe." He did a little dance with his elbows up and moved his hips in a circular motion in Jo's lap with the word 'vibe' making everyone laugh.
"Are you going to stop?" Jo asked him amusingly.
"Why? Am I... doing something to you?" He leaned back and wined his waist again and Jo quickly put both hands on his hips to make him stop. Jo gave him a stern look, and Micah batted his eyelashes in return, making the corners of Jo's mouth turn up.
Micah turned back to Jerry and Marshall. "So just to be clear, you are gonna-" he clapped his hands together once, "-tonight, right? It's the perfect night for it."
"Oh okay, that's a real question," Marshall said with a laugh. He looked at Jerry apologetically then looked away. Jerry suddenly had an inkling of at least one topic of conversation that Marshall and Micah had that day.
"Too many kids in the house," Jerry answered as Marshall turned his face back at him. "But thanks for your concern about our sex life."