The Life and Times of Jeffrey Gordon - Part 3
written by SonicBlu
all content within this story is (c) 2001 SonicBlu. 
Any similarities with characters past or present,
living or dead, is purely coincidental. 

     The weeks slowly progressed into months, and 
the battle for my family continues even stronger 
now. I must admit, it had made me into one very 
exhausted fox. It had only been two years
since I broke it off with Sandra, but to me, 
it seemed like a lot longer. It seemed as if 
each week that went by, I started becoming more 
and more different. Brandon even noticed the changes, 
yet my love for my son had always kept on a steady 
course. If I had to count the number of times I saw 
him too frightened to spend time with the family, 
it only made my heart that much stronger, yet I 
still hurt even thinking of our brooding past. I 
didn't quite know how to handle the change of 
attitude with my son, and as I think about it, 
anytime Sandra came over to get Brandon for the 
weekend, he was more and more inclined to want 
to go. At first, I saw happiness in the way his 
association with his mother had gotten better, 
but deep down inside, I felt as if my heart was 
sinking. Nowadays, he hardly ever came to me 
with anything more than a "hello", and as I 
tried to make conversation with him, I almost 
always received one-word replies from him. 
Something is definitely wrong, and I wish
I could place my paw on it, but I fear the 
answer will come to me sooner or later.

     The phone rang during the early hours 
of the morning. I was feeling quite groggy from the
tragedies that have hit my life like a battering 
ram against my heart, time and time again. I wanted to
break free from it all, but I knew if I lost 
my cool, I would also lose Brandon. I prayed 
deeply that this call was a good one as I 
reached over to pick up the receiver. With 
a tired tone of voice, I spoke.
"Hello?"
"Jeffrey, it's Randy. Did I wake you?" I didn't 
want to be rude by being honest, but I also didn't
want to tell him a lie either.
"I was just barely waking up a few minutes ago. 
It's no bother, Randy. I'm glad you called."
"How have you been feeling, Jeffrey?" I looked 
over at the clock and noticed the time reading 7:30
AM.
"Randy? To tell you the truth, I'm scared and I 
feel like I'm losing my mind."
"Talk to me, Jeff. Please, I'm very concerned 
for you."
"Well, I haven't been able to sleep for weeks. 
Brandon is getting more and more elusive with me,
Sandra's finding loopholes in my actions to step 
in and take him away from me, my lawyer can't do
much to help me, and I'm losing a battle I feel 
like I can't win."
"You're winning, Jeff. Do you still have Brandon 
now?"
"Yes."
"Is Sandra living with you to make you constantly 
nervous?"
"No, but she can do just the same amount of 
damage away from home as if she was really here."
"Let's go back a little bit. What did you mean 
when Brandon said he was getting more elusive from
you? What is he doing?"
"His schoolwork has been getting worse, he doesn't 
seem to want to spend that much time with me
anymore, and his happiness isn't as constant as 
it used to be."
"Okay, tell me something. Have you been the one 
to be there for him every time, or did he come to
you with all that?"
"It was pretty much split in half. Sometimes he 
would come to where I was, sometimes I'd go to
him."
"And now?"
"Now? I try to make an effort to spend time with 
him, but with all that's been happening lately, I
haven't found enough strength to even keep going."
"Well, there's your problem right there, Jeff! 
He's just too afraid to tell you himself because he's
scared of hurting you."
"What? He knows he can tell me anything. He's 
done it countless times before. Why should he all of
a sudden stop?"
"Talk to him about it. Have a heart to heart talk."
"I need to settle my mind first, Randy. It's 
just not easy when I have this humongous weight on my
shoulders."
"Then, I'll talk to him. He knows me."
"Oh, Randy, I can't ask you to do that."
"You didn't ask. I'm offering."
"We'll see. Right now, I just want all this 
legal matter to be done with once and for all."
"Where is Brandon now?"
"He's been out with Sandra all weekend. At 
least there's one thing about Sandra and I. We haven't
gotten into that many fights, but she keeps 
leaving little implications here and there 
about taking my son away. I know she's just 
using that to get my temper out so she could 
use this in a custody battle."
"We'll think of something." Randy whispered 
and paused for a moment as he breathed deeply. His
soothing voice returned back to the phone 
shortly after.
"Listen, I would love to come back over. How 
about Monday night? We'll cue up the football
game, order us all some pizza, maybe even go 
bowling."
"Okay. Listen, I have some stuff I have to do 
today, but I'll call you." I said as I scratched my head
fur softly. 
"Alright. Take care of yourself." Randy replied 
and then the line went dead shortly after the 
sound of the click on the other line. I slowly 
returned the receiver back onto the cradle of 
the phone and heaved a heavy breath through my 
nose, which always seemed to make my whiskers twitch.

     I finally made my way downstairs and eased 
down onto the couch later that afternoon after
taking care of a few of the house's needs. I 
have also noticed I was letting the house get a little
untidy as well, but I thought that since Sandra 
was bringing Brandon back tonight, I would at least
make the house more presentable. I was in the 
middle of enjoying the rest of my weekend off by
cuing up a movie on Channel 42 when my front 
door opened, and Brandon scampered inside. 
"Dad?" he shouted as he ran inside. From inside 
the den, I heard the sound of Sandra's high-heeled
shoes clomping onto the tile of my foyer.
"In here, son." I called back. Brandon appeared 
at the doorway of my den and leaped onto the
couch.
"How was your weekend, Sport?" I asked as I 
turned to face his softly-smiling muzzle.
"It went okay. Mom took me school shopping and 
got me all kinds of cool clothes."
"Brandon's really turning out to be a great kid, 
Jeffrey." Sandra said as her figure appeared in the
doorway. I stood slowly and quickly ran my paw 
through Brandon's head fur, tousling the fur
slightly. Brandon erfed and tried to fix his 
'do as I slowly approached my ex-wife.
"What have you been up to this weekend?" she asked.
"Don't ask." I replied and decided that the 
least I could do was to give her a warm, gentle 
hug. She hesitantly returned the gesture and 
then she backed away slightly after we embraced.
"Jeffrey, please, don't try to show me your 
soft side."
"What do you mean? I just thought I'd offer 
a hug as a sign of greeting."
"Fine." she said and seated herself on the 
sofa. Brandon slowly nudged his body closer 
to Sandra's and leaned his head onto her arm. 
I couldn't help but to hang my head in sorrow. 
Seeing the moment shared between them caused 
mixed emotions within my heart. I felt happiness 
that Brandon was finally more comfortable about 
seeing his mother again, but at the same time, 
I felt heartbroken that it wasn't me he was 
nuzzling up with.
"Jeffrey, I have to talk to you. Brandon, why 
don't you put your new clothes away. Daddy and I
have to talk."
"Okay, mom." Brandon said happily and kissed 
Sandra softly on the cheek. He gave me an identical
kiss before he raced merrily up the stairs 
and into his room. When I heard his door 
close, I knew the coast was clear.
"Okay, start talking. What is all this about?"
"What do you mean?"
"This! You and Brandon. You both seem a lot 
closer to one another, while he's drifting apart from
me. Is there something I should know here?"
"Land sakes, Jeffrey, the very moment Brandon 
feels comfortable around me, you act like it's a bad
thing."
"Sandra, you know how I feel about the both 
of you getting too close. You're still a 
drunk." I said
as I clutched my paws into fists and held 
them behind my back.
"I'm trying, Jeffrey. Do you know how hard 
it is to finally give up a bad habit? I'm 
trying!" she replied as she started to raise 
her voice slightly.
"Then try harder! You still need to be complete
when you see him, and you know I would feel a lot
better about it if you didn't do that kind of 
thing around Brandon. You still haven't changed that
much, which is why I'm emphasizing on you 
getting straight. You still leave here with 
tiny hints of taking Brandon away from me. As 
for his drifting away from me, I still don't 
know what that is about, so do you mind telling 
me why he's taken a sudden liking to you?"
"How the hell should I know, Jeffrey? I spend 
time with him as his mother to her own son. We went
to the movies, I took him shopping, I took him 
out to eat, got him some new school clothes, and I
even got him that new Triple Play game he 
wanted. Is there anything wrong with that?"
"No, but I..." I started, but Sandra had her 
way of cutting me off.
"What have you done for him lately?"
"Brandon knows how I feel about him. I prepare 
him for life, Sandra. Every time he has trouble 
with his homework, I'm there. Whenever he's 
hungry, I'm right there making him something 
to eat. He wants to visit with his friends, I'm 
the one that takes him there. I watch him play 
baseball every night he has a game going. I play 
catch with him in the yard. What the hell else 
am I supposed to
do?"
"You could try listening to him for once." Sandra 
said as she slumped back down on the couch. She
shivered slightly and rubbed her forehead nervously, 
giving me a subliminal message that she said
something she didn't intend for me to hear.
"What was that, Sandra?" I asked as I tapped my 
tail upon the rug.
"Nothing. Forget it. It's nothing."
"To hell it is, Sandra. What's Brandon been telling 
you?" Sandra slowly raised her eyes to me as a
gentle tear fell from her eye.
"You're changing, Jeffrey. Brandon's really seeing 
a change for the worse in you. He told me..."
Sandra paused as she rubbed her furry forehead 
once again and then continued.
"He told me that you just don't seem to care 
anymore."
"He...WHAT?" I shouted, but Sandra motioned to 
me with her paws for me to keep my voice down.
At this point, I didn't care if Brandon was 
listening in from the other room or not. I 
had to know what Sandra was getting at.
"He says you haven't been interested in his 
needs lately, and was too scared to talk to 
you about it. He told me you raised your 
voice to him a few times, too."
"Sandra, Brandon came home with this large 
gash in his cheek. I got scared from where it may have
come from and he told me he did it during 
baseball practice. I might have been a bit 
loud with my words and a little demanding 
that he take better care out there in the 
field, but I got worried, Sandra. How else was 
I supposed to react to that?"
"It wasn't just that, Jeffrey. He told me he 
was just playing around in the house and you 
came in and yelled for him to keep the noise 
down." I slid lower in my seat as I tried to 
hide my face, trying to recall the incident. 
From my recollection, I did have to admit, 
Brandon did set off my alarms that day. I was 
getting stressed out from work and this legal 
matter, that I may have raised my voice in
anger at him. I slowly raised my eyes once again
to face an angry-looking vixen standing before me.
"You're getting pathetic, Jeffrey. Maybe you're 
the one that needs help."
"Damn right I do. I need to be free from all 
this. I need relief here. I need..." I stammered, 
but couldn't quite find the right words to say 
about the threats and the custody issues that were
swarming around us all. Sandra smiled softly 
and placed her paw on my shoulder.
"It's okay, Jeffrey. You're just going through 
a lot of stress. I'll leave you be now. 
Goodnight." she said as she walked across the 
floor to my front door. At that point, I didn't 
care whether or not she
stayed or left, but the opening and closing of 
my door was proof enough that Sandra's presence in
my home was no more. I rested my head against 
the arm of the sofa and another envision of our past
incidents ran through my mind.

     It was the middle of the week. Brandon had 
a half-day of school that day and Jennifer was
babysitting him while I was away at work. My 
boss had come to me telling me of the slight slump in
the business's orientations with the clientele. 
I was told to push our sales even harder, much harder
than even I was capable of doing, or else it 
could cost me my job as the head sales 
representative of Halikman Fur Care Products 
Company. Meanwhile, the thoughts of Sandra's 
threats kept coming
back to me again and again and throbbed 
against the lobe of my brain like a constant migraine
headache. At precisely five o'clock, I 
punched my time card and headed straight 
for my car. I drove home as normal as ever, 
then relieved Jennifer of her babysitting 
duties. As I walked past Brandon's
room, I heaved a heavy sigh. I waved a tired 
paw as I walked past, and called his name 
tiredly, but I couldn't remember his reaction. 
I was tired and exhausted that day. I immediately 
changed out of my business clothes and into a 
more casual wear of my sweat pants and sweatshirt, 
then returned to the den to relax to a movie. 
Suddenly, I heard the sound of loud music playing 
in Brandon's room,
followed by a few items striking the floor. The 
noise practically helped boost my headache pains to a
few extra levels of intensity, so I attempted to 
silence the environment. I slowly opened Brandon's
door to find his entire room in a complete 
shambles. He was found playing his music at 
a rather loud volume, and Brandon was found 
bouncing up and down on his bed. The moment 
Brandon's eyes met mine, he stopped bouncing and 
held a shocked expression on his muzzle. 
"Brandon! Get this mess cleaned up right now and 
turn that blasted music down! You know better
than that!" I said, then immediately left his 
room. I couldn't tell if he started crying from 
my actions or not, since I found myself right 
back in my den, trying to relax, and hoping 
to find the right path to take through this 
mess that kept on developing in my life. All 
I do know is that his room was completely 
silent from then on.

     As my mind started returning to focusing 
on the reality around me, I realized that I started
becoming more monstrous, while Sandra grew softer 
and much more kinder of a vixen than she was
before. Only in this late hour did I really 
begin to see what was going on. I sniffled 
slightly when another image of Brandon came 
to my mind when I saw him cowering in fear 
from his mother when she and I were married. 
Was I now assuming the position of the monster 
in his life? Me, the most caring figure in 
Brandon's life, becoming a grotesque monster? 
Just the very thought of that made
me cry harder. I must have spent a good hour 
or two on the couch, shedding tear after tear over the
mistakes I started making, and wondering why 
Sandra was acting so strange lately. She did 
seem to give me a look that made me feel very 
uncomfortable, but I'm sure if I had any question, 
my lawyer would help me as best as he could. I'm 
sure Mr. Garrett would not let me down, not after 
the rates I pay him. I hesitated about picking 
up the phone, thinking that Mr. Garrett wouldn't 
be able to help me again, but I did have to 
admit, the many times he said the words "I can't 
do anything about that", it made sense to me 
regardless. The law is the law, but where in 
the law does it state that I have to keep living 
this nightmare that keeps developing around me? 
I practiced speaking out to Mr. Garrett
as if he was really in the room with me to make 
sure my voice wasn't too gloomy. When I was
satisfied with my tone, I picked up the phone 
and dialed his office.
"Mr. Garrett, please." I said as his receptionist 
answered the phone.
"Sure, one moment, please." she said. There was a 
brief two-minute pause before Frank Garrett's
voice echoed through the line.
"Yes, this is Frank Garrett, what can I do for you?"
"Mr. Garrett, it's Jeffrey."
"Well, hello, Jeffrey. How's everything been?"
"To be honest, sir, I can't seem to think straight. 
I need to talk to someone about this."
"Listen, Jeffrey, as much as I hate to admit it, 
I just don't have the free time to spare to hear your
problems. I am a lawyer, not a psychiatrist."
"I understand that, Mr. Garrett, but I was hoping 
for some light to be shed on this entire
predicament. I really need the uplifting, and I 
need for it to come from my lawyer."
"Well, I am a bit overwhelmed as of now, but I 
will be free tomorrow. Stop by my office if you
can."
"I'll have to make it there during lunch break, 
but I can make it."
"Great. See you then." he said and immediately 
hung up the phone. I sighed slightly as I returned
the receiver to the cradle, and then I stared 
blankly at the wall.

     My mind began to fade into an unconscious, 
dream-like state, and the only thing I could
envision was that it was a year ago all over 
again. I saw Sandra standing in the kitchen, 
but for some reason, she was cooking dinner. 
I entered the room and saw her with Brandon 
in the kitchen. My vision around me seemed a 
bit blurry as the image of my family slowly 
got closer. I saw the look in Brandon's eyes 
displaying a deep expression of fear as he 
suddenly turned around to face me, and I
felt that it was me he was looking that way 
towards. I looked down at my paws, and I noticed, that
one of them was tightly clutching a bottle of 
Scotch. I knew right away I had to have been 
dreaming, since I refused to touch a single 
drop of alcohol, no matter what kind of day 
I've had. According to the dream, the Jeffrey 
Gordon I saw didn't seem to take that into 
account. It also didn't seem to arouse my 
attention to spring awake. All it took was 
a single sentence from Brandon's muzzle that
finally stirred attention enough for me to awaken.
"Daddy. Please don't hurt me again...."
"AAAAAHHH!" I shouted as I clutched my chest, 
feeling the beating of my heart increased to three
times its normal speed. My breath seemed to 
quicken as I looked around in the empty den, 
then as I slowed my breathing pattern down, 
I fell right back at ease. I held my relaxation 
for a couple seconds for my mind to be 
completely free of stress before I grasped 
on what I needed to do next.

     I slowly rose from the sofa and held my 
paw to my forehead as I made my way up the stairs.
I came to Brandon's room and touched my paw 
to the woodwork of his closed door and let out a soft
sigh.
"Brandon," I whispered under my breath. "I 
never want to hurt you." I sighed again as I 
opened the door to his room slowly to find him 
sitting on his bed. His nose was practically 
hidden behind the electronic, digital video 
game Sandra bought for him, and only his eyes 
were seen over the rectangular object.
"Brandon?" I said in a comforting voice. "May 
I come in?" Brandon shrugged slightly and that gave
me the implication of his approval for entry. 
I stepped onto his carpet and closed the door softly
behind me. I took a seat next to him on the 
bed, but he had yet to break his concentration 
from his game playing.
"Brandon, listen, I know I may have sounded 
really mean last week. I really don't mean any harm.
I'm watching out for you, and I'm doing what 
I can to provide a good life for you. You understand,
don't you, son?" I asked. Brandon nodded slowly, 
but his eyes continued to focus in his video game.
"Brandon? Are you feeling okay?" Brandon nodded 
again as his eyes remained glued to the digital
readout of his game, the thumbs of his paws 
constantly keeping in time with one another to control
his team in the game.
"Good. Listen, Randy is coming over tonight."
"That's nice." Brandon uttered in a silent 
tone of voice. 
"He wants to take us bowling. Are you up to 
it?"
"I guess so."
"Well, then, I suggest you get ready. He'll 
be here any time now."
"Alright." Brandon said and cut the power 
from his video game. 
"Brandon, listen to me for a moment." I said 
as he approached his chest of drawers. He turned to me
slowly and gazed up into my eyes blankly.
"Son, I want you to know one thing. What I 
did last week was not like me. I never want 
to hurt you. You know this, right?" Brandon 
nodded silently and proceeded to procure his 
best clothes from his dresser. I didn't know 
how to react to that. Deep down inside, I could 
still feel the fear growing deep within 
Brandon's veins. He was still slightly 
afraid of me, and all because I couldn't control my
temper in the previous week. I opened my 
muzzle, about to offer a kind of sentiment, but quickly
declined since I knew Brandon's heart wasn't 
going to be in it, no matter what I said. I 
opened my muzzle again from the feeling within 
my heart that wouldn't let me leave without 
saying how I truly felt about him.
"I love you, Brandon." I whispered. Brandon's 
eyes followed their way slowly to the floor as he
whispered his reply.
"Love you too, Dad." Brandon said. I didn't 
even know how to handle such a weak reply, but I
knew it would only be a matter of time before 
we're best friends again. I wanted so much to pick
Brandon up in my arms and hold him close and 
tight, but I also knew that if I made any sudden
moves like that, it would raise the fear factor 
within his system to an all-time high, and I'm trying to
be as soothing as I possibly could.

     Randy arrived promptly at 6:00, and I had 
just made my way downstairs when I opened the
door.
"Jeffrey!" Randy said happily and entered into 
the house. When he saw my appearance, his smile
quickly ran from his face, leaving behind a 
slight frown in its place.
"Jeffrey, you look like something the cat 
dragged in, no pun intended. Are you sure 
you're going to be alright?" I really wanted 
to break down  and cry right there, and the 
lump in my throat kept growing larger and 
larger the more I kept thinking about it.
"T...thank you for...for coming. Come in." 
I stuttered.  I tried not to look into Randy's 
face too much, for I knew that if I did, I would 
probably break down in a constant downfall of 
tears. I led Randy into the den and offered 
him a seat on the sofa.
"B...Brandon's...getting ready. He'll...be 
down...shortly." I hesitated as I spoke, mainly 
because I
wanted to be careful with the way I was talking. 
As much as I tried to fight it, I felt a gentle 
stream of moisture run down the fur under my left 
eye.
"Jeffrey, we don't have to go if you don't want 
to." he started. I held my paw up to silence his 
denial for wanting to share an evening with us. 
If anything, I figured it would be a good 
enough deterrent away from my worries.
"I want to go." I whispered. As I breathed in,
a sniffle developed within my nose.
"Jeffrey, come here." Randy whispered as he held 
his arm open. I wanted so much to slide over, but
I felt my body frozen with fear.
"You want me to come over there?" he asked as 
his arm remained extended. I slightly lifted my
head up, trying to give a nod, but couldn't 
seem to find the strength enough to even move 
my head. Randy must have seen it as a "yes" 
and scooted closer to me. I felt his arm wrap 
softly around me, but I kept my head pointed 
straight down. A few more tears streamed down 
my cheek.
"Jeffrey, it's okay to cry. Please look at me." 
he said in the most soothing tone of voice he 
ever used. I slowly turned my head to look up 
into his eyes and saw a reassuring smile on his 
muzzle. He raised his eyes slightly wider as he 
gazed back at me, but I couldn't react to the 
gaze of assurance within my best friend.
"It's Brandon. I'm losing his love." I said and 
then couldn't help but break down. I lost every bit of
resistance that held back all I could from this 
display of sorrow to arise, but it was pretty much out
in the open by now, and I quickly let it all out.
"I'm sure it's not like that, Jeffrey. It just 
might be a phase he's going through. You have to see it
through with him and take whatever comes from it. 
Just don't lose your grip on your family." Randy
said as he motioned my head to nestle against 
his chest. My body suddenly fell to putty in Randy's
paws as he held me, but at this point, I didn't 
care who it was that was comforting me. My tears fell
right from my eyes directly onto Randy's shirt, 
and causing a large spot of moisture upon his chest.
"Cry all you need to, Jeffrey. I'm here." Randy 
whispered as he softly nuzzled his head against
mine. His paw lightly ran through my head fur, 
and the only sound I heard over my sobbing was the
sound of Randy's light purring.
"Would you like to talk to me about it?" he 
whispered, quickly killing his gentle purr.
"It's like I'm nothing in his eyes anymore. 
I don't even know what to tell him anymore. I was up
there, I gave him my words of encouragement, 
my feelings, I even told him I loved him. It was as if
nothing at all was said." I said through my 
sobbing. Even though my voice sounded muffled being
pressed against the chest of Randy's soft T-shirt, 
he heard every single word.
"He'll come back around. He just doesn't seem to 
see just how wonderful his father really is."
Randy said. I felt his muzzle slowly getting 
closer and closer to my head. The instant I felt his soft
muzzle fur touch my head, I immediately jerked
my body back.
"Jeffrey, I'm so sorry. Please, don't hate me 
for that. I just..." Randy said and paused as his gaze
froze within my frightened eyes.
"Oh, please forgive me, Jeffrey. I didn't mean 
to do anything. I just felt like you needed all 
the love you could get right now, and I got kinda 
carried away. Please, understand." he said as his 
breathing
slowly began to quicken.
"No. It's alright. I'm sorry for reacting like 
that. I'm just not used to that kind of thing."
"I understand, Jeffrey. Believe me, I understand." 
I wiped the stream of moisture from under my
eyes and sniffled. As I turned my gaze back into 
my best friend, I whispered.
"Is...is it okay if you just held me some more?" 
I asked. Randy's frown quickly turned into a large
smile and his arms immediately grew outstretched, 
waiting for me to slide calmly into his embrace.
This time, I managed to find enough strength to 
wrap an arm around his waist as I placed my head
against his chest. 
"I'm ready, Dad. I heard Randy come in and..." 
Brandon said and froze as he saw what was before
his eyes. I felt the sudden rush of adrenaline 
rushing through my veins and I sprang right out of
Randy's embrace, trying to cover up what Brandon 
walked in on.
"Oh, my..." Brandon whispered and slowly turned 
away.
"Brandon, wait. Please. It's not what you think 
it was."
"Daddy, why was Randy holding you?" he said as 
he glanced over his shoulder at me.
"Brandon, it's not what you think it is. I was 
crying and Randy wanted to help make the tears stop
falling. Please come here."
"No, leave me alone!" Brandon said as he started 
to head quickly out of the den.
"Brandon!" I shouted and attempted to walk after him.
"Don't talk to me. I changed my mind about going." 
Brandon said as he quickly left the room.
"Brandon! Please come back!" I called, but the 
sound of Brandon's door slamming shut was the last
thing I heard from him. I turned back to Randy, 
whom looked like he, too, was ready to cry. As I got
a closer look, I could easily sense the anger 
within his veins starting to rise.
"It's all my fault. I may have really screwed 
something up between you and Brandon. Dammit!" he
said as he slammed his fist down onto the arm 
of my sofa. I wasn't upset over the fact that he was
beating up my furniture, but more because of 
the way Randy felt after doing what he felt was a good
deed at the time.
"Please, Randy. Don't feel that way. I wanted 
it. I needed to be held. It was not your fault."
"It is because I wanted it too. I wanted it 
because I needed to soothe my instincts." he said.
"No, you didn't. Trust me, I know you, Randy. 
You feel deeply for your friends. Why would I feel
angered about that?"
"I screwed things up with your family, Jeffrey! 
All because I couldn't keep my paws to myself."
"Randy, you're being ridiculous! I needed to 
be held too and you know it! You were helping me,
and I accepted. It's more my fault than it is yours."
"Jeffrey, things between you and Brandon might 
have gotten better at this point, but now I made the
matter a lot worse! Brandon knows about me and 
may have his doubts about you. I should know
youngsters like that. Anything they see regarding 
homosexuality is practically alienated in their
eyes. I don't think I should hang around here 
anymore. I'm sorry, Jeffrey. Please don't think I'm
angry with you. I'm angry with myself. I have 
to go now."
"NO!" I shouted and tried to tackle him to the 
floor as he made his way across the floor of 
my den. I didn't want to harm my own best friend, 
but if it meant getting my point across, I'd try 
anything. We tumbled to the floor and I held my 
grip on his shoulders, not allowing him to be 
free from my grasp.
"Please, let me up." he said in a quivering 
voice. I shook my head slowly and continued 
holding him down to the floor.
"Randy, I know of your intentions. Hell, I've 
grown up with you, and you've always had a heart of
gold. Believe me, you didn't mean it like that. 
I am fully understanding of this. Please don't go.
Please, don't leave me." I said, now sounding 
as if he was walking out on me in a relationship.
I had to stop myself and think for a moment 
about how I truly felt inside. I wanted Randy, 
of all beings, to stay with me that night, and 
I wasn't about to let him leave.
"Please." I pleaded as another tear developed 
in my eye. It streamed gently down my cheek and fell
onto Randy's nose. Randy loosened all of his 
muscles as I held him stationery, and once I knew he
wasn't going to go anywhere, I slowly let up 
my guard. When I rose to my foot paws once again, I
reached my arm out to help Randy to stand upright.
"I know I may act a bit unusual around you, 
but you have to understand, I'm not gay. I'm as
straight as they come. I still need you as my 
best friend, no matter how you are with others. Will you
stay with me?" I asked as I took it upon myself 
to wrap my arms gently around my best friend to
show him there were no hard feelings.
"Alright. I'll stay," he whispered and returned 
the soft gesture. "But I have to hand it to you, you
really know how to twist a guy's arm, don't you?"
he said as a soft chuckle left his throat. I smiled
at the farcical comment, and I didn't feel the 
need to cry anymore, however, a slight shiver ran
through my body the more I thought about Brandon. 
What's he going to think of his own father seen
in an embrace with another male? This will not 
be easy for me to talk to him about. My smile
quickly ran away from my face, leaving a noticeable 
frown in its place as I gazed up into the
direction of Brandon's room. Randy immediately knew 
what was on my mind.
"Don't worry about him, Jeffrey. Just let him have 
his space, for a little while longer." he said as he
helped me to my foot paws and led me back into the den.

     Randy and I spent the next few hours talking 
on the couch about what had been going on in
my life, and neither him, nor myself, tried to 
make any moves towards each other. Once I knew I felt
a bit better inside, I looked up at the ceiling.
"Hmm, I wonder how I will be able to talk to him."
"Give it a try. He's had time to cool off. Try to 
talk to him."
"Promise me you won't leave?"
"I gave you my word. When have I ever taken it back?"
"You're right." I said with a smile as I placed my 
paw on his shoulder. He softly patted it with his
own paw, and with a bit of confidence within my 
system, I turned into the direction of the stairs,
hoping that deep within me, the words I would need 
to tell Brandon would easily come to me, but I
hoped even more that Brandon would still let me 
talk to him. As I crept slowly up the stairs, the
nervousness within me rose higher and higher, and 
the same question ran constantly through my
mind.
"Will Brandon still love me?" I couldn't get that 
question out of my mind as each step I took
brought me closer to the answer of the very 
question I felt so scared to ask.

     I knocked softly on the door, but I heard 
no reply coming from within. I didn't want to just
walk in on him, so I knocked again. I heard the 
sound of a sudden sniffle, followed by a bellowing
voice.
"Go away!" Brandon yelled.
"Brandon, please let me talk to you. You haven't 
let me talk to you about much lately, but it's very
important I talk to you now. Please, son?"
"No! I don't want to be your son anymore. I don't 
want to be a son of some faggot." Brandon
shouted from inside. I was shocked at what I 
heard, listening to Brandon actually using that kind of
language around me. I never used that word before, 
so I figured he must have heard it in his school
somewhere.
"Brandon Lindsay Gordon! I'm surprised at you! 
You know better than to talk like that! Come on, I
really need to talk to you. It's very important!"
"Go away! I want to be alone!"
"Brandon, listen, I know what you saw in there 
wasn't right. It didn't look right to you because you
didn't know what the situation was."
"What's the difference? You and Randy were 
hugging. That's a gay thing!"
"No, son. It's not a gay thing. Randy was trying 
to comfort his own best friend. I was crying,
Brandon. I was crying because of the way I saw 
you acting lately." I did it. I said what my heart was
so afraid to express, but now I felt obligated 
not to tense up in fear like that again. 
"Brandon, sometimes in life, one needs a lot of 
care. I've known Randy all my life, and he's always
been there for me to help me along in any problem 
I've ever had. When you have a friend like that,
they tend to grow on you, to the point where you 
can trust them with your entire life. I trust Randy
to the fullest extent, and that's why I let him 
hold me while I cried." Suddenly, the door to his room
slowly opened, and a tear-stained gaze peered 
through the crack in the door.
"Did you feel that way about me too, dad?" he 
asked in a soft tone of voice.
"Brandon, you're my son. I trust you with my 
entire life, and if anyone out there were to hurt you,
you know I would be right there to protect you, 
just like Randy would. You just have to understand
that, sometimes, I need protection too, and I 
thought I was losing your love."
"Was I really that mean, dad?" he asked softly.
"You weren't doing it intentionally, son. We just 
drifted apart from each other as you got closer with
your mother. I felt as if you had stopped loving 
me and focused all of your feelings towards her."
"Dad?"
"Yes, son?"
"I'm...I'm sorry." Brandon said as a few more 
tears ran down his furry cheek. He swung the door
open wide and threw his arms around my waist. 
My heart felt as if it leapt in my chest at the very
gesture my son was giving me. I picked him up 
and held him tightly in my arms.
"It's okay, son. This is why it's important to 
communicate, especially in a family. Would you still
like to go bowling with us?"
"I thought you'd never ask." Brandon said with 
a giggle, and the smile that grew around his muzzle
was all the assurance I would ever need that I 
started to get my son back. I put him back down again
and then turned around, humming a gentle tune 
to myself as I made my way down the stairs, into the
den where Randy was waiting.

"How did it go?" Randy asked as I approached him 
with a smile, but my display of emotion was all
the answer he ever needed. Still, I felt obligated 
to reply.
"Wonderfully. He's getting ready again for an 
evening out."
"That's great! See? I told you if you just faced 
your fears like a grown fox, you would feel a lot
better about the situation."
"I guess I owe all of this to you, Randy." I said 
and gave him a quick, tight hug. Randy immediately
hugged me back, and we shared the embrace until 
I heard the sound of Brandon's foot paws racing
down the stairs. I let go of Randy and backed 
away a bit before Brandon's presence appeared in my
den, and the three of us were well on our way to 
a nice, enjoyable evening of food, bowling, laughs,
and happiness. I had my son back the way it always 
has been, and I felt that nothing could break me
down again...but I was wrong.

End part 3