I Love Corey Chapter Fifteen

Vern sat there thinking about that a short while. “Well, you’ve got Nancy all riled up. You’re going to have to do something.”

I grinned. “Make wild passionate love to her. That ought to take her mind off of it for a while.”

Vern chuckled. “Like five seconds maybe. You know Nancy.”

About that time Corey limped in and going over to the refrigerator got a Coke.

“What else is on your mind?”

All of a sudden Vern was serious. Normally we kind of joked and kidded each other but by the change in expression I knew this was going to be something that should be treated differently. Before he got around to saying anything I nodded at Corey and looked at the door silently asking Vern if he wanted him to leave. A slight shake of the head indicated no.

Corey turned around and asked if we wanted anything to drink. Vern then asked if I had any coffee made. I’d made a pot for when Jason was here and there was most of it left. Corey grabbed the perk and another cup and poured Vern and I a cup and returned the perk to the counter. It was a little stale but not to bad.

“What are we going to do about the Scouts?” Vern started out.

“Christ, I don’t know. I’d hoped those idiots in control would have wised up by now. I kept hoping they’d come to their senses and quit discriminating but no such luck. Not only that, it doesn’t look like there will be any change soon.”

“Shit Sam, we both work for the school district and there’s a strict no discrimination policy and that puts us in an awkward position.”

“Ya, I know. The worst part of it is they do a lot of good and we both know that. Kind of like throwing the baby out with the bathwater to kick them off the school grounds and to resign. The only thing is, that looks like where it will wind up. I’ve written a bunch of letters and I know you have too and all we get for answers is the usual bullshit.” 

Vern and I just sat there drinking our coffee and thinking while Corey finished with his notes on the team at the computer.

“You know Vern, it’s not all bullshit to them. I mean, maybe they have something to their argument. I’m sure they think their right. Probably some of them are homophobes but my guess is the majority of them think they are ruling this way to protect the boys. I mean I know their wrong but I can almost understand their line of reasoning. Being gay doesn’t necessary make you a pedophile but I suppose a pedophile male who goes after boys is technically gay. They’ve had a few bad apples and I suppose their trying to protect everyone. The problem is, what about the married pedophile. Is he automatically gay? As I see it, the problem is pedophiles, not gays. How in the hell do we solve that?”

I felt weird. Here I was, talking about pedophiles and I was one. The only thing was, I didn’t think of myself that way. Sure, that first time with Corey I had but as Corey and I had grown to love each other more and more I no longer saw myself in that light. I wasn’t really sure how to look at myself now. The whole thing was confusing. Like a lot of other things there was no clear answer. If you went strictly by law I was. However, the law as we all know is somewhat imperfect. He had been in desperate need of someone and I guess I had been too, only I hadn’t known it. We each seemed to fill an emptiness in the other. His grades were up, he was starting to fill out, and he was making some friends and seemed a lot happier. Was I wrong to be in his life? He needed love and I suppose I did too. I’d lain awake many nights watching him while he slept, thinking about this very subject. I still didn’t have an answer. I just knew I loved him and wanted to protect him and make him happy. If he found someone else to love I would accept that. I’d still try to help him. I don’t say it wouldn’t hurt but if that’s what he wanted I’d accept it. Sure I enjoyed the sex but I could get along without it. I just couldn’t get along without Corey.

“The one I have the most trouble following their line of reason with is the religious thing. What difference does it make whether a scout or leader believes in God or the earth or whatever? As I see it, any boy that is interested should be able to join. All the rest is just bullshit. You know as well as I do that there have been more horrible crimes committed in the name of various religions then almost any other reason.” 

“Shit Sam, I don’t know how to solve it either. I just know the school board meeting is next Monday and the Scouts are on the agenda. I know I’ll be called on to speak as I’m the Scoutmaster and I expect you will because you always seem to be called on. Besides, you’re always helping out. You might just as well be an assistant scoutmaster.”

I was sure Vern was right. I don’t know why but at these meeting I always got called on one way or the other. I was also sure that most of the people that lived in this area had heard a lot more of me than they wanted to. Even when I tried to keep from expressing my opinion someone would manage to call on me and before it was over I’d have to not only express my opinion but defend it. Several times I’d tried to avoid doing so but they never seemed to give up. If it wasn’t the school board or my colleagues it would be someone who thought I might support their position. They weren’t always right in that respect but they kept calling on me none the less.

“Well Vern, I guess we’d better figure out what were going to say. I know I’m going to have to speak against the Scouts. I just hope I can do it in a manner that doesn’t inflame anyone or cause problems. God I wish there was a way to solve this.”

After that neither of us could think of any thing to add to our discussion so after telling Vern that I would be over when Fred showed up I gathered up my stuff and Corey and I headed home. I figured that we wouldn’t have much time for dinner so I stopped and got a pizza for us. The pizza along with a salad would have to do for tonight. Corey didn’t seem disappointed. The fact that he loved pizza might have had something to do with that.

I was right. Fred Davies showed up just as we were finishing the pizza. After a cup of coffee and some BS Corey said he had homework and wanted to practice his art lesson so Fred and I went over to Vern’s house.

This was the first time any of us had really looked at everything. All of us had been so busy hauling and loading and unloading that we really had no idea of what all was there. Fred got positively ecstatic when he found a couple of large boxes full of old wood planes. When we unwrapped them we saw there were index cards with the model and date of manufacture with each. I didn’t know people collected things like that but Fred said he had a friend that was a collector and asked if he could get him to take a look at them and give us some idea of their worth. I told him to go ahead. He pulled out his cell phone and called him and then asked if we would be able to show them in thirty minutes. We said sure so he told his friend to come on over and see them. When he got off the phone we got back to the other stuff.