Harsh Realities

Constantine had gone against the grain most of his life. He’d come out as a Trans boy to his mother a year prior to her unexpected death. She’d done everything she could to help him. It was during a time where being part of the LGBTQ+ community was frowned upon. It was seen as going through a phase. Both knew it wouldn’t be safe for him to come out. They’d agreed on a compromise for the time being. A compromise that became a promise after her death from a Brain Aneurysm. He’d continued going against the grain in the ten years since her death. He came out as a Trans Man after moving away. He’d come out at 23. To the disapproval of nearly everyone back home. They’d let their actions speak. Their ignorance and bigotry spoke far louder. He let his actions do the same. He shamed them. He cut contact after shaming everyone. He’d gone low contact with his dad after his dad was visibly uncomfortable with Constantine being openly Trans. He’d shamed Flynn far more than anyone else. That Addison would’ve divorced him over it. He’d begun living his life far happier in the year since he’d moved to Orlando in hopes of a better life. 

He began speaking out far more than he ever had before. The harsh realities being he still wasn’t fully accepted by others outside of the LGBTQ+ community. Despite living in a more accepting area. He knew there was a chance that would happen. It led to him being homeless and unemployed for the last six months. He’d roamed around hoping to find a job. He’d stayed in abandoned buildings the entire time. He knew which ones were safe to stay in. He’d found a minimum wage job as a Dishwasher near the abandoned building he’d been staying in. He’d managed to book a room in an extended stay hotel two months later. He moved to South Florida a year later after an opportunity to become a Marketer came his way. An opportunity that fell through weeks after moving to Ft. Lauderdale. He’d found a job as a Columnist at one of the Newspapers a few days after he lost his Marketing job. It was an opportunity he took a chance on. He’d written notes on topics he wanted to cover. His Editor wanted him to write about his life. Something he obliged. 

His Column flourished over the next year. The Loft he moved into didn’t feel real that first month he lived in it. He’d wake up each morning wondering how he’d been able to live there. He’d been living as an openly Trans Man since he left home. Insurance from his job paid for his top surgery. Everyone at the Newspaper helped him as he recovered. He’d been able to write from his Loft in the meantime. About the surgery itself and recovery mainly. He’d begun speaking out far more than he’d ever done before. He’d been to several events as one of their Speakers. The majority of the time he was their only Speaker who is Transgender. He gave hope to others that were closeted. People who told him they found the courage to come out in their personal lives. Flynn had tried contacting him through the Newspaper a few times to no avail. Nobody told Constantine he’d been trying to contact him. Until Flynn showed up on what was Constantine's first day back. He’d been unsure of what to say to Constantine. Or how to even have any kind of relationship. Constantine made it clear he wanted no relationship with him. He’d made his bed years prior. It was time for him to keep laying in it.