Once Upon a Time in Bridgeport （30）

"Shit. What happened?" Ryan asked, as he and Ryker hurried back out onto the terrace to see what all the commotion was about.

"I'm guessing he, uh, just told Ty."

"Told Ty what?"

"Oh, you're gonna love this one, Rook," Hayes scoffed, making his way over to him as Audrey stood breathing with JT. "JT's decided he no longer wants to play hockey for a living." He threw his hands up. "Isn't that just fuckin' amazing?"

Ryan cautiously approached Hayes, arms outstretched, inviting him in for a hug in an attempt to calm him down. " Hey. Come to me."

Audrey and JT on one side of the terrace, Hayes and Ryan on the other, Ryker stood in the middle and flicked his eyes back between both couples.

When Audrey had finished breathing with JT, he left her arms and placed himself into Ryker's, allowing himself to cry on his shoulder. "I knew he'd do this," JT whimpered onto his boyfriend.

"Give him a minute, baby," Ryker said softly into his ear. "You know he's reactive. Just…give him a minute."

Across the patio, a similar scene was unfolding between Ryan and Hayes.

"It's his life, baby. Not yours, not mine. His ," Ryan reminded his husband, kissing the side of his neck as they embraced. "Remember that."

After a few minutes, JT broke away from Ryker and approached Hayes and Ryan. Both Audrey and Ryker followed, hanging back a few feet. Hayes started toward JT, Ryan right behind him as well. The two of them stood facing each other in the middle of the terrace, not saying a word for a bit, as if daring the other one to commence the dialogue.

Finally, Hayes spoke. And when he did, his tone was surprisingly gentle. "All I have ever wanted was for you to be fuckin' happy, JT. I thought…we thought hockey made you happy."

JT responded in a similarly gentle tone. "It does, Ty. But not as happy as helping people does. The NHL? That's your dream, not mine. I want something more. It's like what you guys have done at Ryler, you know? All those families you helped, all those kids who couldn't afford to play but you made it possible for them to peruse…no, I mean, pursue their dreams? That's your true influence, not your time in that bullshit league. That's the mark you're gonna leave behind."

He looked at Hayes, who had tears streaming down his face, then continued. "My life has been nothing but absolute turmoil up to this point. I wanna do something that matters with the rest of it, however long that is. Because if I know anything, it's that you never know when your time's up, you know? Life's too short to waste it living someone else's dream. I need to…I need to live mine. " He offered his hand to Hayes. "I am happy, Ty. And honestly, you've bent over backwards for me for too long. You deserve a break, you and Ry. The only thing I need from you right now, the only thing I'm asking for, is your support."

"Hayes?" Ryan said. "I think he just let you know, baby."

Hayes nodded.

He understood.

"Jacob, we need to talk. Privately."

Audrey looked at Ryker, grabbing his hand. "Hot tub?"

"Yes, ma'am," he said, leading her back inside so they could change into their bathing suits and give JT and Hayes their space. On the way in, as they passed by JT, she reached out and touched his shoulder, a silent gesture reminding him that they wouldn't be too far if shit hit the fan.

And while he couldn't quite explain it, for the first time, he knew for certain that it wasn't going to.

???

Having relocated inside to the great room, Ryan and Hayes were seated on one couch, JT on another, the room remaining silent for a bit. JT desperately wanted to break that silence, but what he wanted even more desperately was for Ty to take the first step and finally admit the truth to him.

And, though it was excruciating, he was willing to wait as long as it took.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Hayes took a deep breath, exhaled, and sat forward. "JT, this doesn't take away from your dad or your mom, OK? Because they both loved you more than anything in this entire fuckin' world, but I gotta tell you somethin', and it might…it might come as a bit of a shock."

JT sat forward as well, clasping his hands in his lap and waiting. "I'm listening."

"JT, I'm…you're…fuck. JT, you're my…"

"Luke, I am your father," Ryan said under his breath, which caused Hayes to whip his head around.

"What in the actual mother fuck is wrong with your brain?"

"I'm sorry," Ryan said, covering his mouth with one hand, then let out a muffled, "I'm so sorry."

"Did you know that, like, that line wasn't even in the movie?" JT chimed in. "It's something called the Mandela Effect, where, like, a large percentage of people misremember something that didn't really happen. He actually said, ‘No, I am your father.' Crazy, right?" He locked eyes with Hayes and continued. "Crazy how you can live your entire life believing something that was never even true. Then, one day, you're just smacked in the face with the reality, and you realize, like, everything you ever thought you knew was a lie." JT shook his head. "Fucking wild, if you ask me."

"JT, I was never entirely sure, but you're…my kid. I'm your father, JT," Hayes revealed, shaking, as Ryan put a hand on his thigh.

In an attempt to lighten his husband's mood, Ryan added, "Know how you always used to yell, ‘You're not my fucking father, asshole?' Well, as it turns out, this asshole really is your fucking father."

To both of their surprise, JT shrugged. "Yeah, no shit, fellas. I was wondering how long it was gonna take you to tell me."

The two men looked at each other, dumbfounded. "How did you…"

JT popped up off the couch, reached for one of the pillows, and tossed it in the air to himself as he began pacing. "Come on, Ty. I look just like you, I act just like you, I have the same stubborn ass, shitty attitude as you. The fucking T in my name is for Tyler . It's really not that difficult, man. Lemme guess: you mailed away our toothbrushes?"

Ty nodded, awestruck at how this conversation was turning out.

"I figured. Listen, I'm gonna tell you right now," JT said, tossing the pillow onto the couch next to Ryan, reaching down to the hem of his shirt, and peeling it up over his head. He turned his back to them, pointing with his thumbs to both cardinal tattoos. "This? Doesn't change. Amara McDonough was my mom, and Jacob DiMara was my dad." He flipped back around to face them. "This doesn't change that."

"I'd never expect it to, JT," Hayes said softly. "I just thought you deserved to know the truth."

"And I appreciate that. I mean, some families look…different, you know? They were my parents, but you two have always been my dads, too. I'm lucky that way. I have a lot of people who love me, and that's…" He paused, then moved to where Hayes was sitting, grabbing his hands and pulling him to his feet. "Thank you," he whispered, as Hayes wrapped his arms around the boy and fell forward onto him, his knees buckling from the weight of it all. He sobbed against JT's shoulder, JT's own sobs immediately following.

The two stood in embrace for a bit, then looked at each other curiously before turning to Ryan, who was currently a blubbering mess on the couch, complete with snot flying out of his face. "Shit. Get over here, Rook," Hayes said, reaching a hand out and inviting Ryan to join their hug.

This moment?

It was far from perfect.

In fact, it was raw, real, and a downright mess.

But that's how people fix themselves and figure out who they're meant to be: by first breaking through the shell of who they were.

As the three pulled apart after what seemed like forever, Ty put a hand on his son's shoulder. "You're gonna be one hell of a fuckin' counselor, kid. You know that?"

JT smiled. "Yeah? You really think so?"

"Fuckin' right I do. You have my full support. I just, uh, wanted to make sure you know that."

"Mine too," Ryan chimed in, placing a hand on JT's other shoulder. "But, you already know that."

"I do."

JT debated this next part, but ultimately decided that, since they were assembling the puzzle of his life tonight, there was still a huge piece missing. "So, like, there's one thing that I still need to know, something that doesn't add up."

"And what's that?" Hayes asked.

"What really happened with you two and my mother?"

"There it is!" Ryan said, moving his hand off JT's shoulder and clapping a few times. "There it is." He looked over at Hayes, who was hanging his head and rubbing his face with both hands. "Come on, baby. We knew he'd ask someday."

Hayes lifted his head, nodded slowly a few times, then motioned for JT to have a seat, which he did.

Sitting back down on their couch, Hayes and Ryan took each other's hands and sighed, before Ryan cleared his throat.

"So, once upon a time in Bridgeport…"

???

"...and so, as space expanded and cooled over time, subatomic particles merged. Those atoms began to evolve, and that resulted in what we know today as far off galaxies, stars, and planets. There are these telescopes that work together across a lot of the electromagnetic spectrum…"

"Great job, Nerd. You officially fucking bored my girlfriend to sleep," JT teased, stepping into the hot tub in just his briefs, then flicking some water onto Audrey, who'd fallen asleep in the corner listening to Ryker's titillating lecture on cosmic origins.

Her eyes shot open, as she regained her surroundings, JT swimming over, wedging himself between them, and wrapping an arm around each of their shoulders. "Hey," she said groggily, as he kissed her cheek. "How'd it go?"

"Oh, it…went," JT responded, leaning over and kissing Ryker on the cheek as well.

"Give us the highlight reel," Ryker said, running a hand along JT's bare thigh underwater, stopping just shy of his dick.

"I'm gonna give you something else if you don't stop touching my leg like that." JT nuzzled his face against Ryker's neck.

"Promise?"

"OK, you two can touch each other's dicks later. Seriously, how'd it go?" Audrey asked, as JT sat back up between the two of them, reaching for their hands underwater and gripping them.

"Well," JT took a deep breath, then began. "So, my mom was a complete cougar and had, like, a thing with both Ryan and Ty when she was 41 and they were 23 and 20."

"Holy shit, I knew it!" Audrey exclaimed, both of them turning to look at her. "What? I read Ry's memoir. I always thought ‘The Roomie' was your mom, and I was right."

"Congratulations? Anyway, they…kinda wanted it to be like this , but it never worked for them. There was too much jealousy and they couldn't get past it. Oh, yeah. Um, so, Ty's my real father. He and my mom kinda had a bit of an obsession with each other when they were younger."

"That's…really no surprise," Ryker said. "You two are like twins."

"Jacob, are you OK?" Audrey asked, concerned, noticing the tears forming in the corners of his eyes. "That's a lot, baby."

He nodded as a few escaped down his cheeks. "It is, but I'm OK. Like, even though some of it was uncomfortable to hear, it was so cool to get a glimpse of what she was really like. All I ever knew her as was Mom, but she was this whole other person before me, and…it's just a different side of her, you know? And listening to the way they talked about her? She wasn't, like, some piece of ass to them. They loved her, and she loved them, too. And it was…beautiful and tragic all at the same time."

Both Ryker and Audrey dropped their heads onto JT's shoulders, and the three sat there together, hand in hand, unsure of what the future held, but knowing that no matter what it was, they would face it together as a team.

After a few minutes, Ryker said, "You ever get the feeling you're being watched?" They looked up to the second floor to see Ryan and Hayes leaning against the patio railing, staring down at them. All three of them waved, and they waved right back.

Meanwhile, up on the terrace, Ryan and Hayes looked on as JT, Ryker, and Audrey got cozy in the hot tub. "We look like straight up fucking creeps right now. You know that, right?" Ryan said, as they both stopped waving at the trio.

"Nah. It's…beautiful, Rook. The three of them, it's…"

"What we were never able to be?" Ryan interrupted, and Hayes nodded.

"Yep. Tell you what, though. I don't regret a thing, Rook. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change a fuckin' thing. Not one thing." He paused, then asked, "Would you?"

"Me? Oh, hell yeah. I'd change it all. I would've never even signed with the Isles organization in the first place and avoided this entire shit show." He side-eyed Hayes, who nudged him in the ribs.

"You're a fuckin' dick."

"Yeah, but I'm your fuckin' dick."

"That you are, Rook."

They stood there watching for a bit, smiles creeping across both their faces as the three had moved from the hot tub into the pool. Laughing hysterically, Ryker and JT ganged up on Audrey, dunked her, then panicked and swam away frantically as she came back after them, thirsty for revenge.

"He's happy, Rook," Hayes said softly, his voice cracking slightly. "He's finally fuckin' happy . She'd be so proud of that kid, man. Our kid. I know I am. He…figured it out, Rook. He found himself."

"He really did."

???