Mr. Nelson Barnes and Mr. Norman Perkins returned with us to Mike’s house in Hyde Park. We all sat and listened as Nelson and Norman told the story of their love, how they’d tried to hide it from Nelson’s family, and how they had been found out. They told of the decision, made by Nelson and Andy’s mother, to have him silently drop out of the family. In tears that rended the soul, Nelson repented to Andy for all the hurt he had caused. Then he sat with his hands folded between his legs and his head bowed. Norman was next to him, stroking his shoulder.
Andy remained silent for a long time. When he spoke, his voice was filled with emotion. “If it hadn’t been for the things that have happened to me in the last two years,” he said steadily, “I don’t know what I would be saying to you. You have
