Book of Love - David Horne Page 0,5
He has this vision of what he wants his business to be, and it involves me marrying this bimbo of a woman who’s the daughter of a rich friend of his.” Matt pulled a face, and Alfred frowned.
"I'm sure she can't be that bad—" he tried saying, but Matt's snort cut him short.
"She's a pampered little daddy's girl who only wants the designer things in life, doesn't want to work a day in her life, and just be a diva and socialite." Matt's disgust for the woman was rather apparent.
The next mumbled words shocked Alfred more than anything else, though.
"Besides, I'm gay," Matt said.
"Wait, you're gay? Since when?" Alfred asked a bit bewildered.
Matt rubbed his neck again and scrunched his nose. "Since puberty. I just never came out as a lot of the guys on the football team didn't like gay people That was one of the reasons they picked on you so much." Looking at Alfred again, he saw the look of understanding reappear.
"Helping me would have been as good as telling them that you're gay, wouldn't it?" Alfred asked. Matt sighed and nodded his head.
"Back to my story. I told my dad that I was gay when he continued to spew his stupid plan. I honestly thought he was going to throw me out of the house." Alfred looked confused again, no doubt thinking that Matt being gay was why he was out on the streets.
"He left my room without saying a word and came back a few days later with an even more idiotic idea. Marry the girl and have a lover on the side." Matt's face warped into a mangled display of disgust.
Alfred had a similar look on his face. "Isn't your father a married man himself?"
At the words, Matt's shoulders slumped. "My mom divorced my father when he started to get a bit too money and power-hungry for her. She has her own house and all, but she can't support us both. So, I haven't told her about my predicament. I was close to finally just calling her when I bumped into you."
Nodding, Alfred sighed and scratched the side of his nose. "And your friends?" Matt snorted at the thought of his so-called friends. "My dad got his claws into them, spilling my secret. They all pretty much turned their backs on me for either being gay or because my dad said so. Bastard also froze my accounts." Matt slumped again, being reminded of his predicament.
"Well then, I suppose it's a good thing that I need help at the store. And, this apartment needs a tenant," Alfred said as if he were talking about the weather and not Matt's saving grace.
"I'm studying to become a physical therapist," Matt said, somewhat shyly. Alfred looked at him with that damn open smile again. "That's more than all right. You can do your homework while you're at work. Do you have a scholarship?"
Matt couldn't believe his ears. He answered half in a daze. "Uh, yeah, a partial scholarship."
Alfred nods. "Well, an education is important. We’ll just work your hours around your classes," Alfred said with a smile.
It became too much for Matt to ignore the bubbling feeling that had been growing in his heart. He stood from the couch and walked in front of Alfred. Matt then sank to his knees in front of Alfred, who had tilted his head at him. It was then that he saw Sam out of the corner of his eye. The small pup had the exact same head tilt as Alfred. Matt smiled before his eyes returned to Alfred.
Before Alfred could say anything, he was enveloped in two strong arms that began to gently squeeze him. The hug felt good, Alfred couldn't lie that the arms that were surrounding him felt deliciously solid and warm. Without knowing what else to do, Alfred wrapped his arms around Matt's neck, returning the hug.
"Thank you. Alfred, I mean it, thank you. I didn’t have anywhere else to go. I was close to just giving up," Matt said after he leaned back, breaking the hug, a hug that felt so good. It felt good to have human contact again.
Alfred smiled at him again.
"Work hard on your studies, help me at the store and keep this place clean, and we'll call it even."
Matt nods and stands up when Alfred gently pushed him back, Alfred stood and with a small bounce before looking around. "Right, let me show you around." With that said, Alfred took Matt by the