Nature's Gift

Chapter 10

“…So… I called my attorneys and started divorce proceedings…” Kevin said sadly.

“Are you sure you can’t save the marriage?” Brian asked.

“I’m sure… I’m not in love with her, Rok… and its obvious that she’s not in love with me, either. Have you taken a close look at these pictures? She’s all over Trevor… and she’s very drunk… and very much in her bra and panties… thank God she kept those on! And to top it off, she’s in the Keys doing a video shoot with them… for a fucking week!!!”

“Kev… we’re here for ya, dawg. You gotta know that…” AJ began, putting his arm around Kevin’s shoulders.

“I know, Alex… and I’m glad I’ve got you guys. This isn’t going to be easy, and it isn’t going to be pretty, either. I know her… she won’t give up until she’s got whatever it is that she wants… I have a feeling this could get pretty nasty!”

“I wish you didn’t have to go through this crap, Kevin…”

“Thanks, D. Look… I’ve learned a lot while I was away… and part of what I learned is that I have to be true to myself… ya know? I made a huge mistake with her… and I lied to myself. That’s the hardest part… knowing that I’ve lived a lie for all this time…”

“What do you mean “lived a lie”?” Nick asked, his eyes full of sadness for Kevin.

“Its like this, guys… I was never in love with Kris. I loved her… and part of me always will, I guess… but I was never in love with her. I married her because I was running away from who I am, and that wasn’t right.”

“You aren’t making sense, Kevin.”

“Rok… guys… I’ve been denying this to myself for a long time now… and I can’t deny it any more. I’m…” He choked up looking into their eyes. His voice had failed him, and he was afraid his courage was failing him too.

“You’re what, Kev?” AJ pressed, though gently.

“I’m… gay. Plain and simple… I’m gay… and I hope none of you will hate me for that…” He finished, looking straight at Brian.

Gay?! What makes you think that?” Brian responded in shock.

“Because, Rok… I’m in love with a very special, very beautiful man… that’s what…” Kevin replied somewhat defensively.

“Oh Jesus! Kev… you aren’t even legally separated yet! And if she finds this out, you know she’s gonna go public…” Brian’s voice went higher than he wanted it to.

“At this point, Brian… I really don’t give a shit! I can’t live a lie anymore! I’m human… I don’t wear such a perfect halo around my head! And for the record… we’ve been physically separated for nearly a year now… we haven’t even shared a bed in nearly a year!” Kevin yelled back.

“Ok… so you’re gay! Big fucking deal! Millions of people are gay… Brian… I’d have thought you’d be a little more concerned about your cousin than whether or not this goes public!” AJ interjected, fighting his growing anger as his voice grew louder with each word.

“Guys… guys! Calm down, ok? We don’t need to fight! Kev needs us, Bri… can we count on you or not?” Howie said calmly.

“That came out all wrong… I’m not judging you or putting you down, Kevin. I’m just… well… I’m a little bit in shock right now, that’s all. I still love you… we’re blood, man…” Brian said softly as he looked into Kevin’s eyes, both of them fighting hard not to tear up.

“That’s good to hear, Bri… sorry I yelled at you. I didn’t mean all that, either. Look… I know what I’m doing, guys… I know what could happen. But I also know that this is the path I have to take… I have to be honest, especially with you and with myself. If the press gets hold of it, then I’ll deal with it. Until then, I’m not really all that worried about that… I mean… eventually the fans will have to know… we can’t lie to them… but that isn’t the priority right now.”

“Kev… I’m with you… its gonna take some getting used to, but I’m with you. We have to stick together… this is a family and we have to stick together, no matter what… and we’ve had much worse stuff to deal with… but please… don’t do any drag, ok?” Nick grinned with mischief.

“Thanks, Nicky… and I won’t do any drag… I promise. Panty hose aren’t something I’d want to wear…” Kevin managed a smile and a chuckle.

“So… do we get to meet this very special, very beautiful man you’ve fallen so hard for?” AJ asked with a grin.

“Yeah… if you’ll all come over tonight for dinner…”

“He’s here?” Brian blurted out.

“Yeah, he’s at my house right now… so… do we all have a dinner date or what?”

“I’m in…” Howie said.

“Me too…” AJ grinned.

“I’ll be there…” Brian added.

“Who’s cooking?” Nick asked, causing them all to laugh.

“He is… well… both of us are…”

“I’m there!” Nick smiled.

“Bri… you can bring the wife if she wants to come…”

“Ummmm… might not be a good idea, cuz. She’s in pretty tight with Kris… remember?” Brian cut his eyes warily at Kevin.

“Oh… yeah… almost forgot that… Call it a band meeting then, and we’ll just make it a boys night at home or something…”

“Sounds good!”

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Night was at the house alone, waiting for Kevin to get back from the band meeting. Walking into their bedroom, he decided to check out some of the books on Kevin’s shelf. He was very impressed that Kevin read such deep, meaningful literature. There was Nietzsche, Nostradamus, and LaVey on one shelf, and Thoreau, Einstein, and Darwin on the next shelf.

Finally, his eyes settled on one volume that seemed out of place. Among all these philosophers and scientists was a volume of “Studies in Britannic History” by an author he had never heard of… and it looked like a rather old volume. Wondering if he had somehow missed a classic in his own reading, he reached for the book to take a look at it. What came off the shelf was not a book, however.

It was a carefully designed, hollow replica of a book that looked incredibly real. Behind this façade, Night found something that made his stomach sink… a video camera with a little red light burning brightly on the front. He carefully replaced the ‘book’ on the shelf and stepped back a moment to think. Looking at the position of the ‘book’, and finally noticing the tiny hole where the camera lens would be, he followed an invisible line across the room. His eyes finally landed on the bed, and he instantly understood.

His anger was growing inside him as he thought all this through. Someone was spying on them… he was sure of that. And if they were willing to plant a video camera in the bedroom, then they were probably willing to do anything to get pictures of Kevin. As far as he knew, the phones or rooms might be bugged, too.

He walked back into the living room and sat on the floor. Closing his eyes, he willed himself to breathe slower, deeper, in rhythm with the Earth. As he did this, his heartbeat began to slow, too. After several minutes, fully in a trance, his eyes opened and he stood quickly. Walking outside to the edge of the pool, he mentally summoned Raven. Wordlessly communicating with the bird, he explained what was going on, and with a flourish, sent the bird flying urgently. A second Raven appeared then, and lit on Night’s shoulder. The two stared each other in the eye for a time, then the second bird flew off, too.

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Kevin heard something tapping on the window at the rehearsal hall. Looking up, he saw a familiar dark shape, and hurried over to open the window and let it in. The bird cawed loudly and flew around the room a few times, causing near pandemonium.

“What the fuck…” AJ yelled, ducking out of the reach of the bird.

“Kev… what is that? Why did you let it in?” Brian shouted above the noise as he ducked and covered his head.

“Its ok… he’s an old friend!” Kevin said as he held out his arm for the bird to land.

“D… I think Kev’s finally gone whacko… he’s friends with birds now…” Nick snickered as Howie rolled his eyes and ducked under a table.

The bird finally landed on Kevin’s arm, and everyone watched as Kevin talked quietly to the bird for a moment. AJ shifted nervously from one foot to the other as they watched Kevin and the bird stare silently at each other. The room had grown quiet enough to hear a pin drop, and somehow, they could all sense that some kind of communication was happening.

Shortly, Kevin whispered a thank you to the bird as he lifted it up to the window again. With a loud caw, the bird flew off while Kevin watched it until it was no longer in sight. Closing the window, he turned to face everyone, only to be met by confused stares.

“He’s an old friend… Look… something’s come up… I need to go take care of something. I’ll see you guys at dinner!” He half explained as he grabbed his car keys from the nearby table and dashed out the door. Nick, AJ, Howie and Brian all looked at each other with confusion, shook their heads, and got back to work.

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