Triple the Love

Congratulations

Hank

The weekend had been a whirlwind of emotions, and I felt like Monday had come far too quickly.

“Ugh, Monday morning blues,” I muttered to myself as I parked my truck in front of the office and headed inside. My thoughts were still heavy with Jack and Corey and the whole idea of the three of us being in a poly relationship. But as I walked through the door, I pushed it aside. It was time for work. I had to focus on work. I could deal with the mess of my personal life later. However, as I stepped through the door, I was greeted with something I had definitely not expected. A round of applause. “What the hell?” I muttered under my breath as I took in the sight of Atticus, Alastair, and Damon standing there, clapping as if I had just won an award or something. The smiles on their faces only added to my confusion.

“Congratulations, man!” Alastair said, his smile even bigger than before. “We heard the news,”

“What news?” I asked as I stared at them, completely lost, and confused.

“Ah, come on, Hank, don’t be like that,” Damon said with a big grin. “We heard all about the poly relationship with you, Jack and Corey…and I have to say, it sure is unconventional as hell, but I believe the three of you will pull it off,” I felt my stomach drop. They knew. How the hell did they know? Not only that, but I hadn't agreed to anything and yet, somehow, they were acting as if I had signed up for this whole poly thing. My mind was racing, and I could feel the anger bubbling up inside of me, even while I did my best to keep it in check.

“Who told you?” I questioned. My voice was tighter than I had intended, but it didn’t matter.

“Corey and Jack, of course,” Alastair replied casually. “We were at Vanessa and Damon’s place yesterday for the BBQ, and they told us…word does travel fast, you know?” I clenched my fists at my side as I tried to desperately keep my cool. So, Jack and Corey had told everyone at the BBQ yesterday. They had gone ahead and talked about this poly relationship like it was a done deal, like I hadn't completely rejected the idea. Twice.

“I think it is awesome, Hank!” Damon chimed in. “It is strange, I’m not going to lie, but if anyone can make it work, it’s the three of you. I mean, you guys have always been close, and you complement each other…I think it’s actually pretty cool,” I couldn’t believe he had just said that. That they were happy for us – for me. And here I was, standing in the middle of the office, stunned into silence. I hadn't even agreed to the relationship. I hadn't even made any decisions and yet, my bosses were acting like it was all set in stone.

“Thanks,” I finally muttered. The word felt hollow as I forced a tight smile. I wasn’t about to admit that I had rejected the idea – twice – not when everyone seemed so damn supportive. But I was furious. In fact, I was so furious that Jack and Corey had gone behind my back and told people about this before we had come to an agreement. Alastair came over and slapped me on the back, completely oblivious to the storm that was brewing inside of me.

“Seriously, Hank…I am happy for you, happy for all of you…I know it isn’t tradition, but who cares about tradition, right? As long as you are happy,”

“Right…yeah…thanks,” I said as I forced another smile. Atticus, who was usually the more reserved one in the group, crossed his arms and gave me a thoughtful look.

“I’ll be honest with you, Hank,” he started. “When I first heard about it, I thought…nope, that is a big no. But the more I thought about it…the more I heard Corey and Jack talking about it, the more I realized that it made so much sense. You and Jack were close friends even before Corey showed up, and he just fit right in. So…congratulations, Hank, you deserve to be happy,” Atticus then turned away and went over to his desk. I didn’t know what to say. A big part of me wanted to scream that it wasn’t a done deal. That I hadn't agreed to anything. But another part of me was so caught off guard by their support that I couldn’t bring myself to correct them. After all, how often do people react positively to something as unconventional as a poly relationship? Damon, who was now leaning against his desk, smirked over at me.

“And it must be a massive relief, right? I mean, we have all been wondering when you and Jack were going to admit that there was something between the two of you…and then you added Corey into the mix…” I nearly choked on my own spit. Me and Jack? What the hell was he talking about?

“I never-” I started to say, but Damon cut me off as he waved his hand dismissively.

“Come on, Hank. There is no need to hide it. We have all seen the way you and Jack are together…Alastair and Atticus mentioned it when I first joined the company, and we went out for beers. The three of you were attached at the hip but…the way you and Jack are together…yeah, I’m not surprised by this,” I could feel the anger rising again, but I just smiled.

“Sure…ah…well, thanks for the support, I appreciate it,” I forced myself to say, as I hoped they were done with this conversation. Alastair gave me another slap on my shoulder before he went over to his desk and sat down. Damon took his seat, and I hurried over to my desk. My mind was once again a whirlwind of thoughts. I was pissed at Jack and Corey. Furious that they had taken it upon themselves to share this news without talking to me. But at the same time, I couldn’t stop thinking about the support I had just gotten. Atticus and Alastair were men I had respected from the moment I had met them. Damon had become a close friend as well. They were all behind me. Behind this poly relationship and it threw me off more than anything. I stared blankly at the computer screen as I tried to get a hold of myself. One thing had become very clear to me and that was that I needed to talk to Jack and Corey. Not only did I deserve an explanation, but it was time that they started answering some of my questions.