Dave and Leroy Ch. 15

"That sounds wonderful."

*

The closer it got to Lee and Sue divorce hearing, Sue was calling more and more to talk with Lee and begged to meet for coffee. Lee told her he would meet at a diner nearby. He arrived a little early, sitting at a table with his newspaper and coffee while waiting.

"Lee." Sue was standing next to the table.

Lee, still being the gentleman he was, got up and pulled the chair out for her. "Sue, what did you want to talk about?" He asked as he sat down.

"Please come home, this has gone on long enough. I'll change if I have to, anything, just please come home." Sue was pleading.

"Sue, it's not that simple anymore. It won't just take you changing for me to come home. Sue, I've changed, I...."

"No, please don't say it," Sue said softly, she even looked broken.

"Sue, we've been growing apart for years, even before Leroy came out. You know this." Lee was looking straight in her eyes, she didn't look away. "Sue, you can't accept our son for who he is, I should have stood up for him from day one, but I stayed silent to see if you would change. Sue, you pushed him away, and now you will never get to know that beautiful son they have."

"I want to accept them. I do, but it's just wrong to see two men touching the way they do," Sue stated. "They hid it so well before I caught them, why can't they continue...."

"Because they love one another and they want to show one another that love. They want their son Jason, to know it's okay for two men to be in love." Lee looked at Sue, and she looked disgusted. "Sue, you will never understand, you are a brick wall."

"I don't want this divorce, Lee."

"Sue, you have found ways to postpone this long enough. I'm giving you everything, the house and most of my retirement. It's going to be bad enough. I'm going to have to live with Dave and Leroy for the rest of my life, not that it is going to be bad. But I didn't want to have to depend on any of our kids to live."

"You won't have to if you just came home."

"No, Sue, I don't love you like that anymore." With that response, Sue stopped, looked at Lee for a minute, didn't say anything, got up, and left. Lee didn't even try to stop her, he knew it was for the best. Lee did love her but didn't the way she wanted him to. When the waitress came around, he paid for his coffee and left.

*

"Papa's home," Jason screamed as he ran and jumped in Lee's arms as he walked in from seeing Sue.

Dave and Leroy were just finishing up lunch before Dave had to go into work. "Dad, you okay?" Leroy asked when Lee came into view with Jason in his arms.

"Yeah, just think I need to lay down for a bit. Just dealt with your...." He took a breath, he remembered Leroy doesn't call Sue, mom anymore. "With Sue. Just a short meeting but that woman can take a lot out of you." Lee smiled. "I'm sorry, Leroy."

"Why dad?"

"Because after the divorce, I'm going to be left with nothing. I just retired last year, I thought I could stand living with your moth... Sue. Damn it, she's still your mother, no matter if you claim her or not."

"Yes dad, Sue is my mother. You can call her that, it doesn't bother me," Leroy responded. "Dad, you don't have to worry. Dave and I know you hate that you have to depend on us to live. But Dad, I love that you are here with us. I know I don't say it, but I'm glad you are here." Leroy motioned for Lee to have a seat. "Dad, I..." Leroy looks at Dave. "We pray every day a tumor never grows back, or my seizures stay under control. Having you here is actually nice, knowing if I had a seizure, there is someone here for Jason. I know I haven't had them for a while, but they aren't magically gone, it's only the drugs keeping them at bay. But we all know if I get overly tired, stressed or something else, I will have them."

"Lee, Leroy is telling the truth, we love having you here. You aren't cramping our style, please always remember that."

"Thank you, boys." Lee was a little relieved, he did hate relying on them, but he didn't know their true feelings.

"Dad?" Lee looked over at Leroy. "You took care of me for eighteen years. Let me take care of you for the next eighteen plus years." Leroy smiled.

*

The court session didn't take long, Sue and Lee asked if their children minded only two came. Because of how Sue felt about Leroy, Sue asked Leroy not to attend the divorce. So Aaron and Allison went. Lee felt horrible, but Leroy kept reaffirming, the less he had to be in the presence of his mother; he was okay with it.

When it was all finished, Aaron dropped Lee back off at Leroy's, while Allison took Sue home. When the divorce became finalized in a few months, it was agreed the house would be sold, and Sue will keep everything from the sale. Sue basically made out like a bandit, leaving Lee footing a lot of her bills.

Lee walked in and sat down slowly in a chair of the living room, Dave took Jason over to his mother's for the day. Dave and Leroy thought it would be better to have a quiet home when Lee returned when they took one look at him. Dave knew they made the right decision.

"Are you okay, Dad?" Dave asked when he walked back into the living room with a cup of coffee for Lee. Leroy was in the bedroom, getting something out of their safe, in the closet.

"Just a little tired, Son. I've been waiting for this day for a long time, and Sue has been delaying it. Now it's finally come, I'm tired and..." Leroy walked in, and Lee cut himself off.

"And what dad?" Leroy asked.

"Nothing, Leroy, I'm just tired, that is all."

"Dad, and what?" Leroy persisted.

"Broke, Leroy, I'm going to be broke. Your mother got everything, I had to give her everything to get her to finally agree to the divorce." Lee looked, felt broken and tired.

"You're not broke dad." Leroy smiled.

"You didn't hear me did you?" Lee responded.

Leroy again smiled and then handed him a piece of paper. Lee opened it, it was an agreement Leroy, and he had signed when Leroy came home and borrowed the money to buy the house. "I told you when you borrowed this money, it wasn't a loan. I was giving it to you. You're the one who insisted on making me sign this silly agreement." Lee was getting angry.

"Dad, listen to me, please," Leroy responded. "You know I have always been good with money. I had saved every dime I made. When I came home, I was going to buy this house with it and you know I would have had plenty to live on. I was still in the military and was going to have a roommate, quote-unquote." Leroy smiled at Dave.

"I know son, but, it was our choice to help you buy this house. You were our first born, we, your mother and I wanted you close to home. We were happy you had requested to be stationed here, instead of somewhere far away." Lee looked at Leroy and smiled. "You have a son now, you will need it.

"Dad, Dave and I have plenty for our son." Leroy chuckled, it was still new and great to be able to call Jason their son. Lee just looked at him. "Dad, I told you, I saved every dime I made, and you know this. From when I mowed lawns when I was ten on, even when I went into the Marines. I know I don't make as much now being technically on disability, but between what Dave and I bring in, we are okay, Dad."

Dave spoke up. "Anyways, Dad. You're not getting the money until the divorce is final, and then you are staying with us." Dave chuckled. "We are not trying to give this money to you to tell you to leave. We love you living here, we got used to you being here. We just want you to know, you aren't broke, when you want to go somewhere, anywhere, you can."

"And Dad, if you want or decided later you don't want to live with us, and you want to get an apartment, you can afford it," Leroy smirked. "Just to let you know, you will disappoint a grandchild if you ever decide to leave. But I do know dad one day you may decide, you might want to date and we may cramp your style. I'm not saying I want to see it anytime soon, by any means though."

"Oh no, I'm done with women for a while." Lee chuckled. "Leroy, I love you, let me think about this, please. Thank you, both of you."

"And dad, please remember what I told you the other day, it is nice having you here. I love you too."

Lee handed the piece of paper back to Leroy and walked out of the room, heading to his to lay down. He was overwhelmed by the gesture. Leroy just wants him to be happy and not worry about anything, but he doesn't want to take money from them either. He will have a little bit of money coming in which will do, for the time being, he'll be happy to stay under Dave and Leroy's roof as long as they will allow it.

"He isn't going to take the money, is he?" Dave whispered.

"No, maybe there is something else we can do."

"Like?"

"We need to start looking at schools."

Dave smiled, "I asked you a few times about moving, we are now outgrowing this one."

Edited 10/20/2021