To Out or Not To Out

A few months ago I hooked up with a guy that I have talk to online several times. Things went as planned, but there was something hauntingly familiar about him. Being that I live about 10 miles from the town I grew up in I get this feeling often. We are also talking about the type of place where if you move out, you will eventually move back. The reason for this I’m not entirely sure I have yet to figure out my own reasons for coming back here.

He was using the shower when I solved the mystery. I went threw his wallet and read his drives license. Just kidding. The thought crossed my mind, but I didn’t need to invade is privacy, I actually remember. He is the brother of a friend of my ex-girlfriend and also the cousin of the ex-girlfriend’s brother-in-law. Ah life in a small incestuous town.

Last I heard of him he was living with his wife and two children. Had I remembered who he was before we hooked up, I surly wouldn’t have gone through with it. I’m no home wrecker nor am I saying that after one tryst with me he would see the light and leave that woman, that’s a total lie I am saying that, but I still don’t go down that road.

I decided I would let him know I knew what I knew then he’d know too and feel really bad for doing what he did. Not often do I have this type of power over someone else, I needed to savor it.

“Are you from Lynn?"

“Yeah, I am. Are you?” his tone was suspicious.

“Yeah is your last name ‘something long and Greek’?”

The look on his face was more then just stunned, it said, “If you just said what I think you just said I am going to dismember your body and cut it into tiny pieces, it will take months or even years for them to find the pieces if even find all of the pieces which they won’t because I have military training. In the many, many, many times that I have hooked up I have never been as scared as I was from that look, but I am sure he realized that I would scratch one of his eyes out with the voracity of a an angry drag queen as soon as he was close enough to me with a knife because he smiled, a scary smile but a smile still.

“Right I thought the name on your email was familiar.”

Good he knew I knew.

“Yeah we only met a couple of times.”

“Right in the 80’s with your brother.”

Oh no, I don’t have a brother.

“No I know your sister S. We went to school together I used to date Tracy her best friend. I met you at your parents’ 25th anniversary party. Then again at their house a while later.”

“Oh.”

He laughed a bit nervously, then started to pace as he dressed. It’s one thing to be recognized and have the ability to say no you must have been mistaken, but it’s certainly another thing for someone to say I know you I know your parents, aunts, uncles and cousins, there is no way out of this one.

“This is a bit awkward.”

“Not for me it isn’t.” I pressed my luck and smiled.

“I like your place do you mind if I look around?”

“Sure.”

While you’re looking notice how close the neighbors are, close enough to hear me scream.

He walked from room to room he looked out all the windows then opened the back door inspecting almost every inch. He kept making mindless small talk avoiding saying what I knew was coming. I was getting creeped out.

“How good are you at keeping secretes? ‘Cause you know my family doesn’t know and I’d like to keep it that way. My life is private. Please don’t tell anyone.”

“Yeah no problem.” He stared at me for a couple of seconds the way the godfather would if he had just asked you to do him a ‘favor’ to make sure you understood the gravity of the situation.

I passed the test. He walked tword the door.

"Email me you are interested in doing it again"

I smiled eventhough I wasn't.

Immediately I got on the phone to call Tracy to tell her what happened. No harm in telling her since her and his sister S had a falling out years ago when Tracy married S’s old fuck buddy. She was shocked. He is the last person she would have expected to be on the receiving end of something she’d rather not think about. She also voted him most likely to commit homicide and assured me the story would go no further. It turns out the family with the long Greek name is not the most open minded group. Also she was able to tell me that he and his girlfriend not wife broke up quite some time before our afternoon together.

He called me twice the following day, twice the day after that, he didn’t leave any messages. On the tried day he called me again I answered, he denied calling me at all the two days before. He asked if we could me again, I told him I didn’t have time. That was the end of it.

I hadn’t even thought about him till last Thursday when I was going through the names on knowthyneighbor.org which lists that names of people who have signed a petition that to have the MA state constitution amended to define marriage to be between a man and a woman only, even though the constitution clearly states the State can not create first class and second class citizens as such an amendment would. There was his name listed with his parents address. I called Tracy to confirm the address and that it wasn’t another relative, because there were two other families on the street with the same last name. Tracy confirmed he was the only one with his first name.

Now I am faced with a serious dilemma. I am all for the outing of closeted politicians who vote against gay rights legislation. There is absolutely nothing wrong with plastering their names in every corner of both the physical world and the cyber world. However, I am a bit more reluctant with a private citizen. Is it appropriate to send his mother a card that says: Congratulations your oldest son likes to take it in the ass?