Dave: The First of Many Steps

OCs Dave, Cam, Hunter

Written by: Snarks

Chapter 1

Dave

The First of Many Steps

He'd finally graduated. Two years early, since he'd taken the occasional summer day or night class, depending on his schedule at the garage or the restaurant. Dave had to think long and hard about leaving his jobs. His income between the two was good, but what he was being offered; a position as assistant manager in a high-end store, would cut his travel time by more than half and he'd still be making more money working the one job than the two he had currently. 

He hated to have to tell Cam or George that he was thinking of leaving. In all honesty, he hadn't expected anyone to even read his resumé once they saw that he'd never actually worked in retail. He didn't think selling tires and car parts counted. 

Everyone had been impressed that he'd finished his four year degree in two years by going to classes year round, but when the headhunter had called him he'd initially been struck speechless.  Now he had a tough decision to make.

He'd come a long way at the restaurant, from dishwasher to busboy to server.  The sous chef had even begun to teach him how to cook some of the less complicated meals and praised Dave as a quick learner.

Over the years he had become part of their family in more ways than one, and he felt as though he'd be betraying them by leaving.  The same problem existed in the garage.  The guys had all been so good to him and had treated him like a surrogate nephew and brother. 

He much preferred his brothers of the heart at the garage, his real, brothers and sisters, as well as his real father, Cam, and his wife Lissie who had always been more like parents to him than Damien and Azriel had ever been.

It also meant starting over.  He worried that he would get there only to find out that he wasn't as good a fit as the store owner had intimated.  

It was only a fifteen-minute drive from his apartment to meet his prospective employers, but he'd arranged for a hotel room the night before and had been looking for apartments close by as opposed to commuting every morning. It was only a short trip but he wanted to time the commute and see what the traffic was like to determine how early he'd have to get up in the morning in order to arrive ahead of opening time.

Looking for an apartment, now that he was old enough to rent on his own without a cosigner, would be much easier.  He was a little perturbed that he was too young to buy a house by Connecticut law which he thought was ridiculous, but then, he admitted to himself, what would he do with a whole house to himself when Cam and the family weren't there to occupy the other rooms.

He sighed in frustration.  The idea of making more money for half the work he was used to doing was alluring, but could he stand to be away from his friends and family.  It wouldn't be as difficult to leave the people he'd grown up with; they had never been close-knit, and he was definitely the black sheep. They'd never hidden the fact that they didn't approve of him or his lifestyle.

In the meantime, he was sitting in his father's living room, waiting for Cam, staring unseeingly at the television and thinking so hard about what he should do that he didn't hear Cam walk in and say hello.

"Dave. Dave? Dave!" Cam finally said, raising his voice although he smiled to let the boy know he wasn't really angry.  "Where were you?  I called you five times," he said when Dave jumped in surprise.

"Dad... I need some advice," the young man finally managed to say.  He looked so upset that Cam immediately became concerned.

"What's wrong, hon? You know you can talk to me," he said calmly, sitting on the couch beside his son.

"Yeah, I know... it's just... what I need to talk about..."

"Just let it out.  Don't worry if it doesn't make sense immediately," Cam said gently.

Dave hesitantly told his father what was going through his mind. He apologized profusely throughout the explanation.  "I won't do it if you don't want me to, dad. If you say no, that's good enough for me,"  Dave said, hoping in a way that Cam would make the decision for him.

Cam smiled gently at his oldest son. "We knew you might get some responses when George and I wrote those letters of recommendation for you, not to mention the ones your professors wrote as well.  Why are you so surprised that people have actually shown an interest in you?"

"I thought it would take longer to get responses. Actually, I was pretty sure I wasn't going to get any at all. I guess I'm just... confused. I'm sure that there are more experienced and better-educated prospects out there.  Why would they be interested in me? I just don't understand."

"Because you're a smart man," Cam replied easily. "You worked hard and all year long between working two jobs and going to classes. You fit a four-year degree into two years and graduated at the top of your class. I'm not the least bit surprised."

"But what should I do?"

"I can't tell you what to do, son." Cam said finally, "If I tell you to stay you might end up resenting me for making you miss out on what could possibly be a great opportunity," the older man put his hands up to stall Dave who he could see was about to deny it.

"You might say it doesn't bother you now, but it may in the future.  It's scary, the future. No one knows what it holds, but if I tell you that you can't do this, you'll always wonder what you missed."

"But what if it doesn't work out?" Dave asked nervously.

"Then you turn around and come back here. You still have your apartment... you didn't tell them you were leaving yet, right?" he asked looking at his son who quickly shook his head in the negative, "and you'll always have a job at the restaurant. I have no doubt that George would take you back like a long lost son," he grinned.

Before Dave could argue further Cam continued, "You have degrees in business management, design, and merchandising. You were a straight A student and your professors all loved you. I can't give you what you need or deserve at the restaurant because management and assistant management positions are already filled. You're not needed in that capacity at the garage, and I know, just by the fact that you're even thinking about taking the position, that you'll be making more than you are here."

Dave looked at the older man askance.  "How..."

"And," Cam continued with a grin, "there will be new people, new adventures in a new city. New things to see and experiences that you can't get here."

"It sounds like you're telling me to go," Dave said hopefully.

"I'm not telling you to go, and I'm not telling you not to go," Cam grinned, "I'm just playing Devil's Advocate. I'll tell you what," he said, standing up to get a pen and paper from the desk and returning to the couch where Dave still sat.  He put the two items on the coffee table and drew a line down the center, and wrote the words Pros and Cons on either side.  "You write down all the things you think might happen... what will happen if you stay, what will happen if you leave, got it?  Then, after you've finished them, both good and bad, write the solutions for each of them. Alright?"

Dave nodded uncertainly but began to write.  There was no way to know positively what would happen but he wrote down the best and worst case scenarios.  He grinned a bit as he wrote and finally he finished his project. He called to his dad who was in the kitchen going between helping the younger kids with their homework and directing the older ones to help him make and set up for dinner.  "I'm finished," he said, feeling a little silly at having been given homework at the age of 21.

Cam patted his son's back and took the list from Dave.   He frowned or nodded at various responses but didn't speak until he got to the end and began to laugh.  "I think J.R.R. Tolkien would have a problem with this last part.  I think we can take out being kidnapped by dwarves and embarking on an adventure to kill a dragon and steal its hoard of gold."

"Well, you said to write down what I thought might happen, so..."

"Within the realm of reality, unless you know a way to get to Middle Earth that the rest of us don't," Cam grinned, folding the paper and lightly swatting Dave on the hip with it.

He looked at the paper again and nodded.  "These are all valid concerns.  But the one thing to remember, Dave, is that no matter what, we're always here for you. Whether you leave or not, whether you like it there or not. We'll always be here, and there will always be a room in the house for you."

Dave blushed a little and asked, "What if I crap out? What if I just can't hack it out there? What if I fail?"

Cam put a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder and made him look at him.  "You won't fail, no matter what you do," he said reassuringly.  "This is a big step into the unknown. You won't know if you like it or not til you get there and give it a try, and no one will think less of you if you either don't want to go or if you come back after giving it a shot.  Lissie had the opportunity to go to New York for a job after graduation, but she chose to stay here. If she'd left, we never would have married.  Who knows... maybe the love of your life will be there and if you don't go, you'll never find him."

Dave was startled by Cam's words and looked almost fearfully at the older man.

"It wasn't hard to figure out, Dave," Cam said with a soft smile.  "We suspected it long ago but you didn't seem willing to talk about it and we weren't going to bring it up."

"So... you knew... and you never..."

"Like I said, we weren't going to bring it up until you did, but I thought, well, there's no time like the present."

"No, I mean, you let me stay here. You never called me names. You never looked disgusted when you looked at me..."

Cam frowned, "Why would we?"

"It's just that... Damien and Azriel... and the others..." He'd agreed to a cease-fire with his Dane, but his brother's wife was still not one hundred percent in agreement with her husband.

"We're not them, hon.  We love you. Just the way you are," Cam said, putting an arm around his oldest son and feeling a little upset when Dave sat there stiffly at first.

"Come on, hon, it's me here," he said quietly as he pulled the young man toward him to wrap his arms more tightly around him.

Dave eventually relaxed and put his head on Cam's shoulder.  "How did you know?" he asked quietly.

"I've suspected since you were sixteen. You tried so hard to hide the fact, but you have little tells that weren't hard to miss."

"Really?" Dave asked, trying not to sound disappointed, "Like what?"

"Mostly the way you act around women or don't act as the case may be.  Hunter brings home a new girl every month, it seems, or he's talking about one he'd like to date.  You've never mentioned women at all, nor men, of course, but I've seen how you look at some of the male customers that come into the restaurant.  You don't leer at them by any means, but you have a way of looking and trying to make it seem as though you're not."

"Then there were the nights you went out, telling me that you were meeting up with a friend. You never brought your friends home. Also, I couldn't help but notice your expression a few times when you came back."

"Expression?" Dave asked, confused and a little flustered.

"That 'I've just had a bad breakup,' expression." Cam smiled gently.  "I've seen that look on my own face often enough to recognize it when I see it on someone else's. And when you didn't mention any girls breaking your heart..."

Dave bit the inside of his cheek. He'd had no idea that he'd been so obvious.  "So, I guess you won't be so eager to take me back if things don't work out," he said quietly.

Cam moved one arm to give Dave a small smack against the back of his head.

"Ow! What was that for?" Dave complained, even though it hadn't really hurt.

"I just told you, you'll always have a place here. I'm not Damien, and Lissie isn't Azriel, and the kids are not like Devon and Dane by any means."

"Do any of them suspect?  Or know?"

"Hunter is the one who asked Lissie and me about it," Cam laughed softly.  "Samantha got mad at Hunter and asked him why it would even matter.  It doesn't, by the way." Cam reassured his oldest son. "The twins might be too young still to understand the concept but the other kids understand and no one is judging. Got me?"

"Gotcha," Dave smiled, leaning into the hug and finally returning it.  Then he sobered and said, "That's going to make it even harder to leave. What if my prospective employers don't approve and..."

Cam gave Dave another light smack to the back of his head. "Then it's their problem, not yours," he said firmly. "I'd say give it a chance, and I want you to do the whole tourist thing and take lots of pictures along the way, especially in the city you might be living in.  I want you to take day trips on your day off and take pictures of every place you go, and I want copies, understand?" 

"This isn't just a job offer, it's an offer to get out of West Haven and see new things. Meet new people. Have new experiences. All I want you to is promise me that you'll be careful getting there and if you do decide to move closer that you'll keep in touch with us as often as you can. At least once a month. Ok?"

"Ok," Dave replied sleepily.  The sound of Cam's voice combined with the warmth and safety of the hug was comforting and soothing.  Without realizing it he'd started to doze off.

"Wake up kiddo," Cam joked softly so as not to jar Dave. "You still have to work tonight. And then you have to get started on looking for an apartment."

Dave sat up reluctantly and frowned at Cam. "You said you weren't telling me to go or not. Now you're making plans for me to go apartment hunting."

Cam grinned and patted his oldest son on the shoulder. "I know what I said, but to be honest, the more I thought about it the better the idea seemed.  You've been very sheltered here, and I think going and checking the situation out would be good for you."

"L.G. Moore isn't the only place that made an offer," Dave reminded him nervously, "how do I make the decision?"

"It looks to me like you'd already made it, it's the only place you mentioned," Cam said as he pointed to the pros and cons paper," he stood up and went to the laptop.  He turned it on and as soon as it was booted up he typed in a question.  "It's only a fifteen-minute drive from here, so it's not like it's on the other side of the country. You can still visit us, and we can visit you."

"I haven't even told them I was going to take the job." the boy said nervously, "What if they already filled the position?"

Cam picked up the phone and handed it over.  "That's what phones are for, my David," he smiled.

Dave took out his planner and opened it to the number he needed, looking at Cam for direction.  

Cam merely smiled and nodded his head in encouragement. 

Dave dialed the number and asked for the store manager. His hands shook slightly and Cam put a warm steady hand over one of his cold, sweaty ones.

"Mr. Moore is in a meeting right now," said the man who had identified himself as Seth Lawrence, "I'll be happy to give him a message when he gets out. What is your name please?"

Dave gave the man his number and the reason for his call.

"Oh! David! I remember seeing your resume come across my desk. I'm the one who would like to hire you to work as my assistant manager, and then ultimately full manager in the men's department. Does this mean you're interested?" the man asked delightedly.

Dave was a little at a loss for words but managed to come to his senses long enough to answer in the affirmative.

"Wonderful. I was hoping you'd call. You came so highly recommended I just couldn't pass you up." Seth joked. "I'll definitely give Mr. Moore the message as soon as I see him.  I know you'll probably want to come and see the place for yourself, and decide if you want to work here or not before signing on, so if you'd like to make an appointment I'll write you in.  When would be a good day and time for you?  Mr. Moore usually has Wednesdays free," Seth said as he turned pages in the appointment book, telling Dave the dates and times that his boss had open for interviews.

Dave repeated the dates and times, glancing nervously at Cam as he wrote them down on the desk calendar. Cam pointed to the Wednesday of the following week and nodded at Dave, who relayed his availability to Seth.

"Excellent!" Seth replied, a smile evident in his voice. "We'll look forward to seeing you then."

"Thank you, sir," Dave said with a smile on his face.

"We're not formal here, David. You can call me Seth and I'm sure once Mr. Moore meets you, the two of you will be on a first name basis as well."

"Thank you... Seth.  I'll see you next week then." Dave said happily.

The two said their goodbyes and the young man hung up the phone, looking at Cam with a relieved smile.

His father clapped his son on the shoulder and congratulated him. "You've taken the first big step. The rest is gravy."

"Do you think so?" Dave asked, becoming a little nervous again.

"You're going to do fine," Cam reassured him. "but this means we'll have to go out and get you a new suit.  The one you have is alright but it's getting a little worn, I noticed, and I don't think you'll want to wear black. It's too austere, and you don't want to look like an undertaker for your first meeting," Cam joked.

Dave managed to laugh at the idea. "Anything but blue. I don't want these folks calling me Blueberry for the rest of my life."

"Actually, you'd look really good in a dark blue suit, with a tie to match your eyes," came a voice from behind them.

Dave turned to look at the newcomer and grinned. Hunter smiled back and went to sit beside his father and oldest brother.  "Don't let Joker's comments throw you off, Dave, you look great in blue, just not all matchy matchy like you were that night," he laughed.

Dave resisted the urge to blow a raspberry at his brother and settled for sticking out his tongue, which caused Hunter to laugh and shake his head in disbelief.  "I wish I could take a picture of you like that and send it to your future employers," he joked.

"How long were you standing there?" Cam asked, giving his son a look.

"Long enough," Hunter replied casually, ducking the slap that was aimed at his head.  "Hey! Don't muss the hair. I have a date tonight," he grinned.

"And we all know that you only brush your hair once a day," Cam jibed. "You'll live," he said as he finally connected with his 19 years old head.

Hunter scowled and immediately reached into his backpack to his brush hair back down to it's usual smooth, glossy black curtain.  "No touchy!" he growled, patting it and checking himself in the mirror over the television.  "You're lucky, Dave. With that military-style haircut you always sport you never have to worry about some people," he looked at his father, "messing with it. But to be honest, I'd love to see you grow it out, just to see what it looks like.  Any chance of that?"

Dave shrugged noncommittally and changed the subject.

"So do you want to go shopping with me?" he asked Cam.

"I'd love to. We can take you to Tony's and get you a really nice suit without breaking the bank." Cam replied. "When do you want to go?"

"Tomorrow before work?" Dave suggested.

"Tomorrow is Saturday," Hunter said with a grin, "I'd love to go with you guys. I have an image in my head of what you should buy and I don't think I'll be able to rest unless I'm there helping. Can I go too?" he asked hopefully.

Dave grinned, "If you had your way we'd end up at Hot Ticket and I'd end up going looking like you."

"And that would be a bad thing, why?" Hunter asked archly. "There are worse ways to dress," he continued, looking hurt and then winking to let them know he was just kidding.

"Yeah, we'll make a day of it. Maybe we can even get you into a suit," Cam said with a serious expression.

"I don't think Tony's does Goth, dad, but thanks for the thought." Hunter grinned.

"It's a date then," their father smiled. "Now, you probably have some homework to do and this one has to get some rest before he heads to work."

"Are you really sending me upstairs for a nap?" Dave asked incredulously, "I can just go to the apartment for that," he groused.

"Yes, I'm really making you take a nap. Here. You were dead on your feet last night, and I don't want that to happen again tonight.  So, upstairs!" Cam commanded.

"Yes, sir!" Dave said with a crisp salute.  "As long as you go take a nap as well. You got up even earlier than I did and have been going all day, so you need one as much as I do."

"I still have to help with homework, get dinner started..."

"I can help with that you know," Dave said, "After all, I did graduate at the top of my class, and I do know how to cook."

"Bed. Now. Or else." Cam said with finality.

Dave's eyes widened,  "You wouldn't..." 

"He would," Hunter said with a laugh, "you should know that by now."

"And you'll be next if that homework isn't done pronto," Cam warned.

"Oh, no!" Hunter replied in mock terror, "I'm going! Just don't break out the thumb screws!" He narrowly avoided another smack to the back of his head as he ran upstairs to his room.

Dave scowled but headed upstairs to his bedroom, determined not to sleep.  He laid down on his bed, turned to Netflix on his phone to watch Supernatural and was asleep before the end of the episode.