Tom and Luke Get a Family Pt. 02

Tom gave a cry of relieved delight and went and kissed a weary-looking Olivia. "Another little boy!" he exclaimed in delight.

She smiled happily. "I must try and feed him before I get some sleep," she said, and the nurse hustled Tom away.

"I remember you from two years ago!" she said. "You were much calmer this time!" Tom did not tell her that this time he was even happier, because the baby was his own. He went and fetched Luke from the waiting room and the nurse showed them the baby, who by now had been detached from the cord and cleaned up. She took him to Olivia to try and start feeding him, and the boys left, and went to their respective jobs.

Tom arrived in the lab about coffee time and announced his good news. "Sono un padre!" (I am a father) he said with pride.

Alberto, Carlo and Ben shook his hand, and Alberto kissed him. "Felicitazioni, Tom," they said. Most of the others smiled happily, but a few muttered why did a gay want children?

"In a few days, when things have got sorted, I will treat you all to a drink," Tom announced. Arturo of course was delighted with Tom's news. Luke also told his colleagues of their new baby.

That evening, just Luke and Tom went to see Olivia. She had had some sleep and had perked up a little. The milk flow had begun and the baby had started to take some. "Tom," Olivia said, "The baby is yours. What do you want to call him?"

"I want us to call him Bernardo Massimo Appleton," said Tom. He should bear my surname, as I'm his father. Bernardo is after the man to whom I owe my education and who was my true father, and Massimo is after Luke's mother's husband. I hope these names are OK!"

"Do you think it will matter that our two sons have different surnames?" asked Luke.

"Of course not. Stepchildren have different surnames!" replied Olivia. "I like those names, Tom," she said.

For Olivia to get fully rested before returning to her family, she was kept in hospital for ten days. When she came home, Bernardo's feeding was well established, and after three days, Dorothea felt able to go home. For the next week or two, except on days when he was teaching, Tom did not go back to the lab after lunch, and took turns with Costanza to do the cooking. The one who was not cooking kept Olivia and Bernardo company, or took Giovanni for a walk in his push-chair. Tom found out that Ben had just become the father of a baby girl.

Chapter XIX Exchange of E-mails

From t.appleton@yyyyy.utrab.it

to b.silverdale@zzzz.heptinstalltrust.inst.uk

Dear Mr Silverdale

I'm sorry not to have written to you since Christmas, but life has been very hectic this year. We did manage a couple of weeks in England last month, but you were away. This letter is to tell you that last week, Olivia gave birth to our second son, and I am the father. As a gay, I never thought that something that most men want would ever happen to me, but after long discussion with my darling Luke, we agreed that Olivia and I should try to make a baby, and to my great joy, we managed it. Olivia and our new son (birthweight 4.0 kg) are both well. He is feeding greedily, just like his brother did. His name is Bernardo Massimo Appleton. Yes, I wanted to name him after the man who has been my only real father, YOU. His other name is after Luke's mother's husband. Moreover, when he comes to baptism, I would like you to be one of his godfathers. He will be baptized an Anglican, unlike his brother.

I owe you almost everything in my life except my family. Without you, I would have got nowhere in life. Because of you, I am reaching the end of my probationary academic appointment, and hope to get tenure in a few months time, with nearly 50 scientific papers on my CV. There's no denying that some of my rapid progress has been due to the fact that my boss is himself gay, but it's you who made me a good scientist.

As an additional act of appreciation, I would like you to send me a regular payment form for the Edmund Heptinstall Trust. I want other underprivileged young men and women to get the chance that you gave me. Please come to Italy and visit us, if you do not mind a houseful of babies! Luke and I would love to see you and your wife and to introduce you to Olivia. We both love her and she makes a wonderful housemate, but we realize that she should find someone who loves her for herself rather than for what she can give them.

My darling Luke sends his regards.

Your loving pedagogic son,

Tom

From b.silverdale@zzzz.heptinstalltrust.inst.uk

to t.appleton@yyyyy.utrab.it

Dear Tom

Sylvia and I are delighted to hear your news. We are just as emotionally moved as you are at your wonderful event. You are the son that we never had. I enclose a bank standing order form for your regular gift to EHT.

We are overdue some holiday and even though this is the period of university applications, we can take two weeks off and come to Italy and would love to stay with you for a few days (not the whole time, because we want to see Florence and Pisa!). We will arrive at Valerio-Catullo-Villafranca airport on Thursday 24 November. Please can someone meet us? I'm sure that we can cope with the babies! Our very best regards, dear Tom, from

Bernard.

Chapter XX The Silverdales' visit

The men installed the Silverdales in the guest room. By now, Giovanni had his own room with a cot, and his new brother had taken his place in the crib in Olivia's room. As before, they took it in turns to get Bernardo for Olivia when he woke in the night needing a feed. Since Giovanni now had the room where the man 'on duty' had slept, they fitted a baby alarm to the crib and it would waken them in their room, so that one of them could get Bernardo, deliver him to his mother, and put him back to bed when he had been fed. They lost a little sleep in this way, but Olivia could stay warm in bed.

Tom drove to the airport to collect the Silverdales. He had negotiated a few days off work for the duration of their stay. He asked Alberto to keep an eye on Carlo and help him if necessary. Olivia of course was still feeding Bernardo, and Costanza was cooking lunch each day. Olivia was pleased to see the man whom Tom loved so much, but was unable to go out with them in tne evenings. Tom took Bernard one day to the lab and introduced him to Arturo. It was interesting for Tom to hear Arturo speaking English. He and Arturo had not spoken English together since the end of Tom's first year in Trabizona. Bernard told Arturo that his chemistry had got very rusty since he had started his new career in educational administration. Arturo agreed to join him, Tom, Luke and Ben for dinner at Agostino's restaurant. Tom showed the Silverdales the cathedral, the Roman baths and other sights of the city and one night they all, except Olivia, went to the opera to see Luke's new production of Tosca. Costanza very kindly agreed to stay and keep Olivia company.

Mrs Silverdale accompanied Olivia when each morning, she took the boys for a walk. Giovanni was now a toddler and Bernardo would sit up in his push-chair looking around at everything. Giovanni would chatter away happily in a mixture of English and Italian. He understood everything that Mrs Silverdale said to him in English, but often replied in Italian. Tom and Luke both tried to get him to speak more English. After three days, the Silverdales left by train for Firenze and Pisa. The boys bade them goodbye, because they were flying back home to England from Pisa.

Chapter XXI Disaster strikes at the Teatro Musicale

Early in December, Luke's cellphone rang at 3 am. It was Cornelio. He told Luke to get up, dress and come to the opera house. The building was on fire! Tom lay stolidly asleep, so Luke wrote him a quick note, tucked up the bedclothes round him, dressed hastily and slipped quietly out of the house.

As he approached the Teatro Musicale in the car, he could not see any flames. He parked the car in the street and went and joined the small crowd surrounding the building. There were three fire engines and firemen were everywhere, and so were the police. Tom found Cornelio who told him that the fire was now under control. The automatic sprinkler systen had done its job, and the fire would be out wthin a few minutes.

The firemen had said that Cornelio and Luke, wearing helmets and protective capes could accompany the head fire officer to inspect the damage. When the officer said that it was safe, they were given powerful torches and were able to enter the building. The front foyer seemed totally unaffected. They moved through to the ground floor of the auditorium. There were no signs of fire damage, but the awater from the sprinklers in the balcony above had soaked the seats and carpet under the balcony.

They mounted the stairs to the first floor balcony. A site of destruction met their eyes. Clearly the fire had begun here. Most of the wood and upholstery from the seats had been destroyed or damaged, leaving behind just the metal frames. The pillars were charred, the ceiling was black. Everything was soaking wet from the sprinklers. They had to tread carefully: the floor had obviously been damaged. They climbed up further to the top balcony, but did not dare step out from the marble stairs. The floor had been burnt through in several places, though there was no water damage at this level. Many of the seats were charred, and some were still smoking. It was not possible in the dark to see if there was damage to the ceiling or roof.

They left the building and Cornelio said, "You go home now, Luca, and get some sleep. Meet me here at 8-30 and we'll talk to the staff. We'll send them all home for the day and then decide what to do next." Luke drove home and crept into bed at 5-30. A sleepy Tom grabbed him and put his arms round him, and secure in his mate's warm embrace, and in spite of a hyperactive mind, Luke fell asleep.

Next morning, Cornelio, Pauline and Luke met all the theatre employees. Cornelio told them that the building was still in the hands of the police and the fire brigade, but that as soon as they released the building, they should all come to work, as the rehearsal rooms, all backstage facilities and the orchestra pit were undamaged.

The staff all went home, and Tom, Pauline and Cornelio with permission made a detailed survey of the building. The foyer and all the offices above them were undamaged, as were the stage and all the backstage facilities. Having made detailed notes, Cornelio contacted the insurance company and arranged for a surveyor and claims inspector to attend. Luke asked what the situation was with respect to employee salaries. Cornelio said that there was enough money to pay them for three months, and they were insured so that in the event of a claim, 50% of employee pay would be covered by the policy. However, there was no doubt that this was a financial disaster, because the fire authorities said that the theatre would have to be closed until all the repairs had been completed, which was not likely to be less than six months.

Luke thought for a few minutes and said, "If we could find a decent-sized hall, we could do concert performances. Of course we would have to charge the public less, but it is better to have a little money coming in than nothing."

Pauline said, "I moonlight with an amateur choir, and we do our thrice-yearly concerts in the Aula Popolare in the Municipio. Could we consider that?"

"That's worth a thought," said Cornelio, "it holds about 500 people. I don't know what the hire costs would be though."

"We could reduce the costs by not hiring principals, and using the chorus to supply the roles," said Pauline. "If it's a concert performance they could sing from music rather than memory, like in an oratorio. Some of the chorus might jump at the chance to sing a principal role, even without a pay-rise."

"Well, I that's all that we can do today," said Cornelio. "Once the fire people have left the premises, we can all resume work on a nine to four basis, with a lunch break of one hour. I'll get in touch with the city authorities, and see about the hall."

The insurance company was very helpful, and before the week was out, contractors were in, dealing with the soaked carpet and upholstery and stripping out the damaged areas on the first floor balcony. Luke was back at work on an office hours basis with only an hour for lunch. However, he got home daily at 4-30 pm and so was able to see more of the children. Giovanni came running to meet him the moment he heard Luke arrive. "And how's my big boy today?" Luke would ask him. "Bene, Pappa" Giovanni would reply and Luke would say, "No, you must answer in English," before picking him up and kissing him.

The city council was willing to allow the company to use the Aula Popolare, charging them only for the actual hours of performance and subject to honouring all existing evening bookings of the hall. They began by holding a couple of daytime rehearsals there to accustom themselves to the hall and its acoustics, and within a month the company was holding three concert performances per week, each of a different opera from their recent repertoire, starting with Nabucco, with members of the chorus singing the principal roles. Doing this, with lower prices, offered the public a chance to hear more music. Just a few of their pre-booked solo principals were prepared to perform at these concert performances, sometimes for a reduced fee.

Luke really enjoyed the luxury of not having to work as many evenings as previously, because he could read to Giovanni and help put him to bed on nights when he was not working. He had always envied Tom this experience. So every evening before he went to bed, one of the men would read Giovanni a story and would go through a picture book to teach him the English names for animals and household objects.

Chapter XXII Bernardo's baptism and afterwards

In January, Tom and Ben both got tenure as university employees. Although Tom had been in Trabizona a year less than Ben, he had caught him up on the promotion ladder. Arturo saw to it somehow that neither of them were at a financial disadvantage compared with Italian-born academics.

After a few weeks, Olivia started to wean Bernardo. He was putting on weight and growing steadily. Giovanni, when he had got used to a newcomer in the house, was very nice to his little brother, and showed no signs of jealousy. He would go up to him, stroke his hair and say "Dolce bambino" (sweet baby). "That's because he is too young to be jealous," said Olivia, "as long as he gets the attention that he did before, he will enjoy having a little brother, who will soon be old enough to play with him." Both men were ecstatically happy at having a family, and Olivia was also happy that after the disaster with her erstwhile lover, she had two delightful children and two doting fathers. Costanza was also happy. She had no grandchildren of her own, and she also doted on the two little boys, without hesitating to discipline them gently when necessary.

Easter was early that year, and they determined to celebrate the festival by having Bernardo baptized. Tom telephoned his spiritual director, Professor Francis Eglantine of Oxbridge University, and asked if he could spare the time to come to Italy to baptize Tom's new son. Tom said that he particularly wanted his son to be baptized by the same person who had baptized him. The Professor acquiesced enthusiastically, saying that he could combine it with a couple of trips to research libraries. He added that he was looking forward to meeting Tom's family. "A lot of time has gone by since your and Luke's blessing service," he said. "There will be a lot to catch up on!" Leonora was to be Bernardo's godmother, and the godfathers were to be Ben and Bernard Silverdale, for whom Luke would stand proxy.

Tom talked to the Chaplain in Bologna. He said that while he would have loved to have the baptism at dawn on Easter Day as part of the Mass of the Dawn, it was quite impractical because of the need for guests to travel, so it was decided to hold it in the afternoon of Easter Day. The Chaplain was happy to let Professor Eglantine officiate, with himself assisting. Tom said that he would like any member of the congregation who wanted to attend to do so and personally invited his fellow churchwarden.

The event was a very happy occasion. Bernardo was quiet and even the dose of (carefully prewarmed) water did not make him yell. The other children present sat very quietly, Giovanni on Luke's knee and Francesco on his father's knee. Francesco's little sister lay gently burbling in her carry-cot. Guests included Dorotea and Massimo and of course Olivia's parents and Costanza. Tom had booked a quiet family restaurant in Bologna with a private room, where all the guests, the two priests and the representative church members were able to celebrate the christening with panini, cakes and Prosecco. Much later, when all the other guests were gone and the children put to bed, Tom, Luke, Olivia and Francis Eglantine sat down to family dinner, which Costanza had offered to cook, in spite of it being a holiday weekend.

A few weeks later, Tom and Ben had to attend an international chemical congress in Switzerland, at which they were both reading papers and presenting posters. The congress lasted five days. Leonora was not happy in being left alone at home with two young children, so Luke consulted Olivia and Costanza, and Leonora and her children were invited to stay for the duration of the congress in Luke and Tom's guest room.

A chaotic week followed, in which Luke had to take time off work to help cope with four under-fives. The children though had a wonderful time, even though Francesco had to share a double bed with his mother. Mealtimes were a bit noisy, but were enjoyed by all three adults. Luke had to be a firm disciplinarian, but on the whole the children behaved well. After a tiring time getting the four of them to bed, both babies still needing a breast-feed last thing before bed, Leonora was usually exhausted and went to bed quite early. One night, Luke took the opportunity to talk to Olivia. He took hold of her hand, a gesture of affection which he had not often used with anyone except Tom. Olivia noted this with some amusement as well as affection. This man, who had always given the impression of being at best indifferent to, and at worst scared of women, seemed to be becoming human.

He asked Olivia about herself. She told him that she had had many friends in her native village, but none close. She had got her Laurea triennale after three years study at Bologna University. She had not had a lot of friends when she was there and those that she did have were all male. She had never had close girlfriends of her own age. The department in Trabizona had not offered many opportunities to meet men or women who might make good friends. The man who had got her pregnant had been her first deep relationship. "Do you miss him, in spite of his behaviour?" asked Luke.

"No!" she replied. "You and Tom are much more interesting persons, and you respect me as a person, rather than using me as a sex-object. I love living here with you two boys."

"I just fear that you need sex and we are not in a position to give it to you!"

"Caro Luca, I am perfectly happy being a mother! If I feel some time that I need to be fucked, I will tell you both."

"But you need someone who loves you for yourself, rather than for what you can give them!"

"Luca, if I meet a man whom I want, I will let you know. Don't spoil a cosy ménage à trois as long as you two are happy!"

"Do you miss your work in the lab?" Luke asked anxiously.