Swan Song Read Online Free

Duane’s in the Romantic Nights loft at the top of the stairs, to check messages and see what the day had in store. May and I watched them fondly as we waited for the coffee brewer to do its thing.
    “It’s nice to have some young blood around,” May commented. “I got used to Charlie’s and Duane’s energy and high jinks over the summer, and I was afraid we’d have to go back to being grown-ups all the time when the fall semester started. But even with Charlie gone back to school, Duane and Becky have settled in nicely together, haven’t they?”
    I nodded my agreement as I added Truvia and nonfat creamer to my coffee. “It’s a relief not to have to worry about one of them developing a crush on the other, too, don’t you think? From the first day, Becky and Duane have been like two puppies, totally enjoying each other without any romantic drama. My best friend in college was gay,” I added wistfully. No matter how many years passed, I still missed Danny. He’d been a better friend and a closer confidante than any of the girls with whom I’d hung out, perhaps because there had been no element of competition between us. It must be the same with Duane and Becky.
    May chuckled. “From what you’ve told me, there’s already been enough drama in that young man’s life.”
    I had to agree. Charlie Putnam and Duane Starling had been best friends right through high school, but Charlie hadn’t been certain about Duane’s sexual orientation until the night of the New Year’s Eve dance at the school when Duane had chosen to come out publicly by asking Charlie to dance. Not a good move, but the ensuing flap led to some good things for the boys, their friends and the community as a whole. A group of their schoolmates and several teachers joined together to make a public service video offering advice on less dramatic ways for gay youngsters to come out to their friends and families. The video went viral on YouTube. Not only did the boys’ friendship survive the trauma of New Year’s Eve, they became local, then national, celebrities in the youth community and thoroughly enjoyed their fifteen minutes of fame.
    “Duane’s an interesting guy. He seems content enough to work here for a while, but has he ever talked to you about what he wants to do with his life? Being a gofer and computer geek, however competent, in a small town office like this one can’t be all he has in mind,” May opined.
    “Strutter would probably know, but I don’t. Strutter and J.D. have done more real parenting with that boy over the years than Mr. and Mrs. Starling ever did. Not only did they not know what was going on with him, they didn’t want to know, and as far as we can see, they still don’t,” I told May sadly. “Thank goodness for best friends and their parents, I guess.”
    “Why didn’t Duane go to UConn with Charlie?” May wanted to know. “Didn’t he have the grades to get in?”
    I had to laugh at that one. “Not only did he have the grades, he was salutatorian of the Wethersfield High School graduating class. He loves to tell people he has brains as well as beauty, usually with a big wink. No, he didn’t go to UConn because he didn’t want to waste his parents’ money until he figures out what he wants to pursue as a career, which I think is surprisingly responsible for a guy his age. I mean, how many people really have a clue about their life’s work at age 18? So he’s giving it a year or two and trying out different things while he takes some basic courses at Manchester Community College. That’s where he and Becky met. His parents set him up with a small apartment and a good used car and said they’d pay his tuition as long as he takes at least two courses a semester and works 20 hours a week. I think they wanted him out of the house as much as anything else, since they obviously consider him an embarrassment or a bad reflection on their child rearing abilities or something; but the arrangement works