I Was Outed By A PR Company

I hadn't fully moved in with Stefan and was still at my house share midweek. Stefan had a late business meeting that Monday and missed our usual video call. When my phone rang I thought it was him. No it was an Intensive Care Nurse at the Queen Elisabeth Royal University Hospital telling me that Stefan had been attacked on his way home from work and was in a coma. Could I come up to the hospital right away?

Took me about thirty minutes to get there and find where he was, when I went into the ICU room he was wired up to machines that were beeping with flashing lights and various drips. The ICU Nurse explained that he had been attacked at the Central Station on the way home from his office and may have suffered brain damage from the beating he took. At present his condition was stable but we had to wait for him to regain consciousness before we would know if any permanent damage was done.

Could I sit and talk to him he may be able to hear me and it will help with his recovery. I sat there holding his hand, double handed like he did to me that first night and talked about how we shared our first gay experiences then our first night together. As I spoke I thought I could feel him grip my hand, a few moments later the ICU team came in and asked me to leave. I think my heart stopped at that moment and restarted when the Doctor said I think he may be about to come out of the coma.

Standing outside the room shaking internally two police officers came over DI Carol McLagan and DS Tom Moor. They took me over to a break out area to explain what had happened. Stefan had just entered the Central Station and was heading over to his platform when two girls intercepted him and started to beat him with what was later identified as hockey sticks and shouting at him 'fuckin rich faggot.'

The late night commuters stood with stage fright with what they were witnessing. Out of the crowd an elderly lady went over and started to beat incessantly on one of the girls with her walking stick. Her grandson had just come out as being gay much to his family's vocal displeasure. She felt she had to protect him as though it was her grandson she was protecting.

This seemed to bring the watching crowd out of their trance and went to Stefan's aid, by that time the station CCTV security had alerted two officers who were on concourse duty and were on the scene quickly forcibly subduing the two assailants.

A third assailant ran over and took what looked like his watch. I said it was one of those ridiculously expensive watches that the insurance company insisted a tracker be fitted to. They asked me why he would be targeted, I explained about the newspaper article, the repeated appearance of my creepy friend who also called me a 'fucken faggot'. Carol said he may be a groupie who hangs around interesting people but will check it out.

It was then she dropped the bombshell, given the severity of his injuries would I phone his parents and let them know what had happened or would another of Stefan's friends do it. It would be better if it was coming from someone who knew Stefan rather than Police knocking on their door. I said I would but will phone one of his friends first Sir Richard Hardcastle, Carol said she knew Sir Richard as she leads a small specialist team dealing with homophobic violence which he was instrumental in having set up.

I phoned Dickie's private number, Karl answered almost instantly. I had just finished explaining to him what had happened as Dickie joined in asking Carol, by first name, what additional resources she needed? She said she could do with some additional help to release two of her specially trained DC's who are currently guarding Stefan at the hospital, instantly he replied they will be there within the hour.

I knew from conservations with Stefan about his father that he was an early riser and would be up by now. I used Stephan's phone again, instantly I heard a brisk voice with a strong South African accent saying.

"What can I do for you?"

I replied as Carol had briefed me, short and sharp.

"I am Stefan's friend and I am with him in hospital he was attacked on his way home from his office last night and is currently in a coma, you and his mother might like to come up." His instant brisk reply was.

"We will be up in the next available flight, I will text you details, and can you meet us at the airport." I said "yes of course." Twenty minutes later a text arrived with the flight details.

When I went back to his room it was empty, the ICU nurse said we have moved him into a private room, he is out of the coma but still very weak, battered and bruised but should make a good recovery.

As I arrived at his room the Chauffeur from all those weeks ago was standing there and opened the door for Carol and me, saying to Carol the other guard is on overwatch. I had no idea what that mean. Carol explained later that they were in the background watching us try and see if you can spot them, you won't.

I sat down besides Stefan this time he put his hand on top of mine reassuringly, I needed it. DS Moor came in and said to Carol, some developments, they both left. I left Stefan to go and meet his parents, he wasn't too happy about me having phoned them, I lifted my arm exposing the SOS bracelet that he gave me saying the nurse told me what these are.

At the airport I recognised his mother first they both looked alike, his father by contrast was big and impatiently dominating of what was happening around him. I had one of those boards that said De Vries on it. Stefan's mother came directly over and impatiently asked how is he Jason? "Out of the coma and complaining that I had told you," his father asked can you take us to him.

We went straight to the hospital and directly up to his room, his mother rushed in without waiting his father by contrast was no longer impatiently dominating but a father in his seventies who though he was about to lose his only son. I waited at the door until Stefan waived me in and introduced me to his parents. We were joined shortly thereafter by DS Tom Moor and DI Carol McLagan, who introduced herself by saying.

"We got all three of them in custody." The room went silent at that point as Carol went on to explain what had happened.

Stefan was targeted because of who he was by two girls who only knew him from the article in the Sunday supplement about him. Both have been detained under Section 3 of The Mental Health Act 1983, they were transferred two weeks ago into a local care in the community program which they both absconded from two days ago. The third assailant was an opportunist thief who stole Stefan's watch to fund getting back home to the Ukraine.

Apparently she was sex trafficked but escaped from a conditioning house in Irvine run by a pimp we know as Des Marshall. The watch contained a tracker and we found her hiding out in a Glasgow squat which led us to a house where six other young girls were being held as impending sex slaves for local brothels. The two girls held under the Mental Health Act will be returned to a secure facility possibly for the rest of their lives. The six girls found at the house in Irvine will be returned to the Ukraine as soon as arrangements can be made.

As for the girl who stole Stefan's watch she will be charged with Aggravated Assault and Theft if Stefan presses charges, if not will be deported to the Ukraine and handed over to the authorities there as she has no family to speak off. Stefan looked at me and said would I phone Karl and have him arrange something through one of his charities. If he can I will not press charges anyway I always hated that bloody watch, it was so ostentatious.

We left Stefan with his parents then I ran them to see his apartment, his mother like all mothers wanted to see how her son lived his life. In the bedroom on each of the two bedside tables were framed pictures of both of us naked and embracing each other, one in the shower. We had forgotten to put them in the drawer before leaving for work a day ago. I said, "sorry I should have moved them before you went in the bedroom," her question was simple do you both live here. All I could say was I was to move in full time next weekend. She then asked if she could keep one of the two photographs.

I said yes as a booming voice said welcome to the family.

©outed943shorteroticstories

Epilog.

We moved in together and have now lived together for three years, Stefan has fully recovered. The two girls with mental health issues were held indefinitely in a high security secure mental facility. They both write to us on a regular basis. Evelin Dovzhenko the watch thief, Karl helped her resettle with one of his relations in the Ukraine and is now at University studding to be a Doctor, an anonymous Ukraine charity is funding her studies.

I now work full time for a number of Dickies and Stefan's charities, my employment as an Applications Design Engineer became untenable after I was outed as being gay, most of my younger work colleagues accepted me as I was but a few older ones didn't. We all did a Kiltwalk marathon, red kilts and all stag.

My creepy friend is still about sometimes he says hello or waves from the crowd, he took part in the kiltwalk too and raised over a £1,000 for a Gay charity.

Des Marshall became a supergrass in consideration of a lesser sentence and is currently in a witness protection program.