We all huddled in a group outside Matt's house. It was the first time I had seen it. It was a simple blue brick house with a small yard and bricks leading up to it. I could see the chimney sticking out but I noticed in the back there was a fire pit as well.

"Come on," I tell them as I go and knock on the door. I'm not sure why but I was expecting it to be Matt, so when a beautiful African American lady answered the door with two kids holding her legs, I was surprised. The kids who looked to be about 3 looked so alike, I figured they were twins. The lady looked bewildered at us, and I didn't blame her. She seemed stressed out with the kids, and her hair was in a messy bun. Her makeup was smudged a little and her white shirt was now a bit stained with coffee.

I give her an awkward smile, not knowing exactly what to say. I wave and breathe out, "Hi."

"Hello," the lady says.

"We're Matt's friend Mrs. Denovan," Gina says as she stands beside me.

"Oh," Mrs. Denovan says. "Well- come in. I'll call him. Pardon the mess. My nephews are here for the weekend." We step inside and look at the toys sprawled across the floor. "I promise I normally look better and so does the house, but I'm not used to little ones anymore. My kids are all grown up," she explains. I look around as we sit on the couch and see the family picture. Matt had an older brother and two younger sisters who happened to be twins as well. In the pictures, it seemed to be his brother's highschool graduation as they surrounded him with big smiles. Matt looked a little younger in that photo. I can see everyone notice it and smile too.

"Matt-" Mrs. Denovan yells.

"How old was he in this picture?" Gina says. "He looks around 13."

"Just about," Mrs. Denovan says with her hands on her hips. "Here is my all star-" she says and ruffles his hair as he approaches us.

Matt looks at us in surprise and I smile, getting up from the couch. "Can we talk?" I tell him and he nods, a little flushed. He leads me to his room where I see a lot of trophies. He sits on his chair and I take a seat on his bed. The room seemed like a regular teenager boy's room, with a lot of sports posters on the walls and a lot of sports related material. He even had a basketball hoop hanging from the back of the door. "I'm sorry we all came unannounced, but I wanted to let you know we support you." He raises his eyebrow and I know what he's thinking. "Don't worry. I didn't tell anyone what you told me, but they came because they knew you needed us. If you want to tell them or your family, we're here. I'll stand by you. They will too," I say all this and hope he understands our sincerity.

Matt seems to think about it before standing up and reaching out his hand to me. I accept it with a smile and walk with him. I knew he was nervous, but he also knew I wasn't rushing him. We both knew that he had told me his secret because he wanted to be who he was, without being afraid.

Mrs. Denovan is the first to notice our concerned looks and calls Mr. Denovan. "Honey, come here please," she says.

I give her a nod as Matt walks us to the kitchen. The group stays with the kids as Mrs. Denovan follows us. Mr. Denovan steps out of a room with glasses falling from his face. He notices Matt sitting on the table and me next to him, noting his serious demeanor. He steps out of the room and takes his own wife's hand. They both sit down and look at us.

"Is she pregnant?" His mom says.

My eyes widen as I can hear my friends stifle their laughter. "No," I quickly rushed out in defense.

"She's here for moral support," Matt says and their eyes widen in shock. I could see our friends poke out their heads, faces equally out of shock. I couldn't imagine when the last time they had heard his voice was.

"Is everything alright, son?" Mr. Denovan hesitantly asks.

I look over at Mrs. Denovan who has fresh tears in her eyes as she reaches her hand for Matt's. "Sweetheart," she says in a broken voice. At that moment, I felt like I was intruding. However, I didn't move because I knew Matt needed me. He grabs her hand and takes a big breath. I squeezed his hand in comfort, all I could offer him at this moment.

Matt looks at his parents and speaks. "Mom, dad. It might not be what you want to hear, but I'm gay." I could see the falter of hesitation in their eyes, but just as quickly as it had come, it left.

Mrs. Denovan scoots closer and embraces her son with a hug. She mumbles, "my poor baby," over and over again. I can see his dad look stern but takes Matt's hand from me. After a few minutes of her crying, she finally moves away and looks at him. "Matt, baby. It's okay."

Matt was crying at this point as he heaved out, "I didn't want to disappoint you."

She quickly shakes her head, "I'm so sorry we failed you."

"I didn't know my son was suffering by himself," his dad grunts, fighting back his own tears. "You have nothing to be ashamed of. Of course, we support you and are here for you."

Mrs. Denovan wipes away her eyes. "I'm just so glad my baby is back to me." She looks at me, "He used to be so talkative. Could never shut him up. Then one day, he grew quieter. They said it was him growing up, a phase, but then he stopped talking. I never understood why, even when I asked, he never told me. I felt like I had failed him. I did, haven't I?" She looks over at Matt, "you were so worried about us not accepting you that you let that flame of life go out."

"We should have done better, son."

I step out as Matt shakes his head and tells them no, that it wasn't their fault. I walk with my friends who are all playing with the twins. Link and Grayson look exhausted as each has a twin in their arms. Gina is on the sofa, taking videos and laughing. I sit next to her and smile at the scene.

"You did good, miss valedictorian," she says, bumping my shoulder.

I look over at the family who is still in each other's arms and say, "I didn't do anything. Matt mustered up the courage and spoke his heart." I bite my lip and ask, "you think they'll be okay?"

Gina looks at them, "yeah. I think they'll have time adjusting, but they'll be fine because they clearly love each other."

"Yea, besides, he always has us," I say with a smile.

"Thanks for being the friend he needed," she tells me.

I smile at her and wink at Link, "we all have the right to express ourselves."

I look at Grayson and smile as I notice his eyes on the family. He was extremely happy for them. He catches me looking at him and nods.

"Are you back?" I mouth and he nods his head. He was back to stay. 

>>>>>> 

I know this might not be how a lot of people's experience goes, but I hope that changes soon and they find comfort in who they are. I always knew Matt would be gay in the story, but I hope I did okay in representing him. 

Let me know your thought's on the chapter. 

Ps. Next chapter is NOT one you want to miss ;)

Till, next time. 

Phoenix out :)