Alex and Glen

Pre-med Alex was sitting high up in the bleachers so he could have an unobstructed view of the gym floor.  His boyfriend Glen, all-state gymnastic champion and Olympic hopeful was about to make his last run at the vault for the night.  Glen really didn’t have to make the second run, his scores were already the highest but it was just good form.  And Glen was nothing if not thorough.

The boys, young men barely out of their teens were ready to take on the world.  Alex had aspirations of becoming a world famous cardiovascular surgeon while Glen, after winning gold, wanted to continue in some sort of sport related field, maybe open his own chain of gyms.  They referred to each other as boyfriend but they both knew they were way too young to make that kind of commitment.  Being very attractive young men, they both had fun “playing” with other guys with similar interests.

But Alex and Glen also felt a deeper connection; someday when things settled down they knew they’d reconnect to make that commitment.

Glen was ready; Alex sat up straight to watch.   Glen took a deep breath then slowly exhaled, he inhaled once more then started his run.  When he hit the springboard then placed his hands on the horse, Glen caught a glimpse of something shiny on the floor as he was supposed to fly over.  The last thought that went through his head as he was falling was, what an odd place for a nut and bolt.

In a blink of an eye Alex and Glen’s lives changed forever.

Glen was told he was lucky.  Lucky?  His legs were useless; he’d be wheelchair bound for the rest of his life.  How was that lucky?  He was told if the injury had been higher up, he could have been totally helpless.  As it was he had full use of his upper body.  He could feed himself, dress himself, and with the right training and the proper assistive devices, use the bathroom by himself.  And his dick still worked.  Whoopee!  Who’d want to be with a broken man?    

Along with losing his legs, Glen discovered he lost a lot of his friends.  Well, he sort of helped with that.  His friends weren’t sure how to handle an angry, resentful Glen when they were used to a happy, pleasant fellow.  Glen pushed them away one too many times until all but the most loyal and stubborn stayed, including one Alex Wilder.

Alex visited Glen day after day even when Glen shouted at him, cursed at him, and forbade Alex to ever see him again.  When Glen shouted himself hoarse, Alex just sat outside Glen’s room.  He used his time wisely, bringing his books so he could study.  He continued on his pre-med course but decided that once he became a doctor he would specialize in psychiatry.  Eventually Alex’s stubbornness paid off, and Glen allowed Alex to visit. 

Glen grew stronger, learning how to use his new body.  With counseling, he went through the stages of grieving and, when ready, Glen returned to school with a renewed purpose to teach those like himself to take back their lives.  He studied hard and pushed himself to earn dual degrees.  And yes, he did eventually win gold, in the Paralympic Games.

Alex and Glen were inseparable ever since.

*****

“Where’d ya go?  You smell like the back room at Woody’s,” Glen said as Alex walked through the door of their apartment.  Glen rolled up to the door intent on giving his partner a kiss but the overpowering smell of cigarette smoke forced Glen back.

“You and your sensitive nose,” Alex grumbled as he tweaked said nose on his way to the shower.  Alex uncharacteristically shut the bathroom door as he shed his clothes, turned on the water then stepped into the shower.  Glen stared at the closed door.

“Alex,” Glen said quietly against the door.  Something was very wrong.  They rarely closed the door, not since Glen’s blood pressure had dropped and he wound up on the bathroom floor.  The only time the door was closed was when they had company. 

The door suddenly opened startling Glen into action.  He rolled back to give Alex room to walk past.  Glen watched as Alex and his towel wrapped hips walked into their bedroom and sat on the edge of their bed.  Alex slightly leaned over, burying his head into his heads.

“What.  Is.  Wrong?” Glen demanded to know, pulling Alex’s hands away from his face until Glen saw the unshed tears in Alex’s eyes.  “Oh my god, what happened?” Glen asked more gently as he wrapped his arms around his lover.

“I’m not sure how much I can say,” Alex whispered.

“A patient?”

“Sort of.”

“What does sort of mean?”

“I didn’t speak with the patient, I spoke with the patient’s sort of boyfriend.”

“What the fuck does that mean?”

“I’m just not sure how much I can reveal.”

“Okay,” Glen said as he scratched at the top of his head trying to understand.  “Would I know the sort of boyfriend?”

“Probably.  He done just about every gay man in Pittsburgh.”

“Hold on, wait a minute.  Brian Kinney?”  Alex nodded.  “Didn’t we read about that kid who was…holy shit!  Alex nodded again as he pulled away and crawled into bed. 

“Kinney witnessed it, didn’t he,” Glen confirmed before he transferred himself into their bed, shedding his own clothes then snuggling close to Alex.

“I’m here, Babe, I’m here,” Glen whispered over and over until Alex stopped shaking and they both fell asleep.

-end-
 

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