Chapter 194 - KEVIN'S DECISION
Even after Kris finished speaking, none of the four people in the living room made any sounds. The parents stared at the tan-skinned man with wide eyes, looking surprised by the young man's statement.
Even his lover was staring at him in disbelief as well. Kris, after the 'hot scene' in the car earlier, looked like someone who had lost all his confidence and became a timid man instead. But, the tall man looked like he gained his courage again and became a different person just now. He looked like someone who was being possessed by a spirit.
Kevin's foster parents were at a loss for words for a moment, but the father managed to find his voice not long after.
"I know you're not a bad person, Kris. Selena was very grateful to you, and she complimented you a lot too. But, I have to say that you have been a bad influence on Kevin. Kevin was an innocent guy who didn't even know how to date, but what have you done to him? Just now he even dared to do bad things in front of his parents. You are not a bad person, but you are bad to our child."
It felt like a long sword was stabbed into Kris's heart when he heard Benjamin's statement. He became so unlucky just because he failed to restrain his lust earlier, and now Kevin's foster parents continue to attack him with the material.
It was a shameful incident that greatly reduced his value. Maybe he was nothing more than a horny dog in front of Kevin's parents now. All the plans he made to win Kevin's parents' trust were blown to pieces.
Kevin, who now looked like an empty body without a soul, could only stare at his parents blankly.
He didn't even dare to take a glimpse at his lover, who was sitting right next to him. He was afraid to see his lover's expression right now, so it would be better for him to pretend like he couldn't see the expression.
"Kevin's father is right. Our Kevin was an innocent man before. He didn't even know how to kiss another person, but just now he looked like a..." Charlotte couldn't even continue her speech as she drew her gaze away from Kris.
It felt like Kevin and Kris had just committed an unpardonable crime, and the woman couldn't even say a word to describe a crime that was too cruel.
Both Kevin and Kris remained quiet, and they looked like two kids who were getting scolded by their parents. They could only remain silent and didn't dare to argue.
A few minutes passed, and no one dared to speak after his parents cornered Kris mercilessly. Perhaps none of them remembered that they were supposed to have dinner tonight. Neither of them was hungry, and neither of them thought of food.
"I apologize for the incident earlier," Kris finally broke the uncomfortable silence. "It's true that I was a bad influence on Kevin. I was the one who―"
"That's not true!" Kevin hastily cut off Kris' words, but his eyes remained fixed on his parents. "If you are upset about an embarrassing incident in the car, then you have to blame me and not Kris. I kissed Kris first, and he just kissed me back. I'm the bad guy here, so please stop blaming Kris!"
"Kevin..."
Kevin could hear Kris whispering his name wistfully, but he didn't want to look at his lover even for a moment. He believed that the incident was indeed his fault, and he couldn't see it as Kris blamed himself. He was the one who started the kiss, and if he didn't, Kris wouldn't lose control and be overtaken by his lust. Yes, that's his fault.
"Why are you being like that, Kevin Beischel? I've known you for more than ten years, and I know that you are not that kind of person. Stop defending this man and just―"
"You don't know me, Dad!" Kevin once again cut someone off, and this time he cut off his father's. "It's not that I didn't know how to date or didn't know how to kiss, but I just hadn't found the right person then. That's why I was like an innocent child in your eyes. But I'm an adult now, and I've found the love of my life. Can you please stop treating me like a child?"
Kevin looked so frustrated, and he even dared to raise his tone while speaking to the pairing who had raised him in the past ten years.
Kris was startled when he heard that tone, and he reached out his hand to grab his lover's hand. Kevin flinched, but he didn't avoid Kris' touch and let his lover comfort him in the usual way.
The parents saw the intimate interaction, and they displayed disgusted expressions on their faces.
"You can get angry at me, Kevin. But, don't you think about your deceased mother? I know that your mother is no longer around, but don't you want to give her a grandchild? You are the last one in your family that had the Beischel surname. Don't you want to have a kid to bring that surname as well?" Benjamin didn't even stop after hearing his son's harsh statement earlier.
However, Kevin did not budge. He continued to stare at his father with an unfazed look. "My mother was able to accept my relationship with Kris from the start. Please don't bring up my mother's name if you want to oppose my relationship with Kris."
Kevin's tone was flat without any crest or trough. His gaze remained on his father, challenging the older man without a hint of doubt.
Kris was surprised, but Benjamin and Charlotte looked more shocked than him.
"What?" Charlotte was the first one to react. "Selena had accepted your forbidden relationship since the beginning? But how come she didn't tell us anything about that?"
"We shouldn't focus on that question," Benjamin chimed in. "We should focus on why did Selena accept that kind of relationship? Selena only had you, Kevin. Why did she easily accept that you wouldn't be able to give offspring for your family?"
Both parents were surprised, and Kevin could see it.
"It's because my mother only had me that she accepted my relationship with Kris. She only wanted me to be happy."
It was the turn of the parents who felt stabbed in the heart when they heard Kevin's statement.
"You think... we don't want you to be happy, Kevin?" Benjamin's voice sounded so soft and weak, and more or less, it pinched Kevin's heart and made him wince.
"That's not what I meant, Dad―"
"We do care about you, Kevin! We also want you to be happy!"
The already tense atmosphere grew even tenser as the father and son pair were involved in a dispute.
"We know that same-sex marriage is legal in this country, and we're not narrow-minded people either. But, would you be happy if you married a man? What if you feel lonely in the future because you don't have children in your marriage? Your mother and I were very lonely before we finally adopted you from the orphanage. We were almost divorced then. We weren't happy without you then, Kevin! Can't you understand our concern?"
It seemed that Benjamin couldn't hold back his emotions anymore, and he even almost cried in front of his adoptive son. Charlotte scooted closer to her husband and rubbed her husband's shoulder gently, trying to comfort her emotional husband.
Kevin was silent. He thought his adoptive parents were against their relationship just because they were narrow-minded people, but he was wrong. He never knew that his adoptive parents had such a past before they adopted him from the orphanage.
Kevin could feel Kris' hand tightening his grip, but he didn't respond and continued to stare at his parents with gloomy eyes.
"Forgive me for being an unfilial son to you, Dad, Mom," he whispered weakly to the two parents he loved with all his heart. "I never knew about your past, so I didn't know that you had experienced such pain in the past."
Benjamin and Charlotte stared at the young man sorrowfully.
"We just don't want you to feel lonely, Kevin. We want you to have a complete family, to have a son or daughter who will accompany you and your spouse until you are old and eventually lose your time in this world. That's an ideal life, Kevin," Charlotte said as tears rolled down her cheeks.
Kevin seemed to be contemplating his parents' advice, while Kris was nervous as he waited for his lover's decision. The final decision was in Kevin's hands, and he would accept whatever decision would be made by his lover.
"I don't want to be lonely and don't want to fight much with Kris in the future, so I have made the best decision for me and Kris...."