{"id":197,"date":"2020-06-17T03:34:37","date_gmt":"2020-06-17T03:34:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/?p=197"},"modified":"2020-06-17T03:34:37","modified_gmt":"2020-06-17T03:34:37","slug":"june-17-a-midsummer-nights-resolution-by-m-h-e-priest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/?p=197","title":{"rendered":"June 17- A Midsummer Night’s Resolution by M H E Priest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Click here to read the prequel.\u00a0<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Starsky<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Well, Pop, it\u2019s almost 1:30 and I\u2019m still awake and it ain\u2019t for lack of tryin\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

I can blame the heat, but it ain\u2019t that. Hutch knows I\u2019m hiding something. I was kinda quiet tonight. But I\u2019m not really <\/em>hiding anything. Am I? Naw. Just tryin\u2019 to get things sorted out. Ever since we moved into this house to save money, the way I think about Hutch has, well, kinda sped up. Nope, it\u2019s more like it exposed a secret I can\u2019t keep to myself any longer. That\u2019s why our little talk now, I guess.<\/span><\/p>\n

Damn that Mary Polanski! She\u2019s a great snitch and she sometimes gets these kooky intuition things that help once we can figure \u2018em out, but now she\u2019s made it personal. Said when she cast some spell — what the hell is a Wickin, anyways? people who really like candles? — this morning at sunrise — some summer solstice thing — so she said I popped into her head and she chanted some sort of mumbo-jumbo on my behalf, then apparently Hutch popped in her head, too. Her head musta got pretty crowded, if she has much in there to start with. Okay, Pop, I know that\u2019s not real nice. But she is\u2026 different. I like her.<\/span><\/p>\n

So she says I need to resolve the unresolved. What the hell does that mean?<\/span><\/p>\n

Okay, so if I\u2019m honest with myself, which you always said I should be, it\u2019s Hutch. This is all about Hutch. My whole life is about Hutch. Hell, my whole life is<\/em> Hutch. I love<\/em> him. More than anyone or anything. Maybe even more\u2019n you, Pop. Well, maybe not, \u2018cause my love for you and Ma feels real different from what I feel for Hutch. I\u2019ve loved Blondie since the first day we met.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s weird, though. When I think of love, I see him even when he\u2019s not around. Smell him. Hear him, even, in my head. And I show him every day that I love him, like I pat his fanny or let him eat my fries or take most everything he dishes out, you know, stuff like that. But it ain\u2019t enough no more — oh, Christ, what I am thinking<\/em>? The only way I don\u2019t<\/em> show him is with\u2026 s-e-x.<\/span><\/p>\n

Naw, naw, that ain\u2019t right. With him, I know it\u2019d be\u2026 making love. Sex is what I had with other grunts in \u2018Nam, ya know? There, it meant we were alive and sex was one of the few nice things we had over there. The local beer sure wasn\u2019t nice, and beer should be real nice. And with a lot of girls — I mean ladies — back here, but it was mostly like<\/em>-making, except for a couple women. I told you about \u2018em, \u2018member?<\/span><\/p>\n

Anyway, that\u2019s what I need to resolve, I guess. Get over this, this ingrained\u2026 what\u2019s it called? Oh, yeah, taboo. Of making love with another guy. Yeah, that\u2019s it. You wouldn\u2019t think less of me, wouldja, Pop? It would kill me if you did.<\/span><\/p>\n

But how do I resolve this? I can\u2019t say any of this stuff to him. It\u2019s — ugh — way too soapy. Even now, my brain feels like it\u2019s sudsing up. So what am<\/em> I gonna say?<\/span><\/p>\n

Oh, hell. Maybe I\u2019ll just show him. Now. Or I\u2019ll chicken out if I wait any longer. Good thing we\u2019re housemates.<\/span><\/p>\n

Oh, crap. That\u2019ll change, won\u2019t it? We\u2019ll probably share a bed from now on if he doesn\u2019t kick me in the nuts and toss me out on my butt. You don\u2019t think he\u2019d do that, do you, Pop? His bestest pal?<\/span><\/p>\n

Gotta take that chance. I can\u2019t deny what I need and want no more, \u2018cause I gotta be honest. Been dis<\/em>honest about this way too long. Hope you can forgive me, Pop, for me lyin\u2019 to myself and for lovin\u2019 a man that way. Ain\u2019t nothing wrong with love, right, Pop? I figure you<\/em> will forgive me, \u2018cause you love me and want me to be happy. And if I have that<\/em> type of love with Hutch, I\u2019ll be, well, on-top-of-the-world-over-the-moon-and-through-the-woods happy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here goes nothin\u2019, Pop. Or maybe it\u2019s everything. Thanks for listening and talk to ya soon, \u2018kay?<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hutch<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Almost 1:30 and can\u2019t sleep, Granddad. It feels like the air is humming. And there\u2019s this powerful sense of anticipation, like something great is coming. Hmm\u2026 Never thought I\u2019d personally relate to that song.<\/span><\/p>\n

So the sandman is staying away. Remember when you used to tell me about him coming to see me when you tucked me in bed? Those summers with you and Grandma were the best times. Until you… Okay, I don\u2019t want to talk about that right now. You already know anyway.<\/span><\/p>\n

I can blame the heat or the humming air for not sleeping, but that\u2019s not it. Starsky\u2019s hiding something. When I came back from court, he looked at me in a way I never saw before. Kinda sad and frightened and determined and well, vulnerable. He was too quiet tonight. Maybe he\u2019s just working through something and will tell me later. He\u2019s done that before, more than once.<\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s something else. Something I\u2019m<\/em> working through. For a couple of years, at least. Well, a lot more than a couple of years, to be honest. I\u2019ve loved Starsky since the first day we met. And I\u2019ve been trying to figure out that love.<\/span><\/p>\n

Yeah, yeah, I need to stop this endless analysis already and admit it. I love him. A lot. More than can be measured on any scale. And in a special way. I want to make love to him. No, with<\/em> him. It\u2019s not just sexual attraction. Maybe it\u2019s a spiritual connection that needs an outlet? I know sex with Starsky would be very different than the few hand jobs Jack and I gave each other. That was kind of a rite of passage, horny teenager experimentation. With Starsky, it would be\u2026 right and natural, no matter what anybody in this society says.<\/span><\/p>\n

Would it, Granddad?<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s getting harder and harder to date women. I still love \u2018em, but I keep wanting whoever I\u2019m with to be Starsky. He\u2019s in my head almost constantly. And when I\u2019m aware he\u2019s not there, I feel I\u2019m missing the better part of me. The part that is indomitable, full of life and joy. Full of love.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m ready. I think. Oh, for crying out loud, I have to stop this\u2026 pussy-footing! I am<\/em> ready. The thing is, how do I bring this up? Will he laugh at me, accuse me of pulling a tasteless joke? Or will he take me seriously and kick me to the curb after he whups my ass? Uff da!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I can\u2019t think that way, Granddad. Like you told me, take a chance and you\u2019ll never regret it, even if what happens isn\u2019t what you want. So true when I took that chance to be a cop, and I got what I wanted. It\u2019ll be true again when I take the chance with Starsky. I just hope I get him. Oh, Jesus, he\u2019s in the doorway…<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Starsky and Hutch<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Starsky walks into Hutch\u2019s bedroom, barefoot and silent as a thief except for fast, soft, ragged breaths. He stops at the bed\u2019s edge. Stops breathing when he sees Hutch\u2019s hopeful expression in the dim light coming from the hallway. Gathers up all the courage he has to tell Hutch everything, but all that comes out in a whisper bursting with everything is —<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHutch.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Hutch gasps audibly, unable to see Starsky\u2019s back-lit face but he doesn\u2019t need to see because he hears so much in his name. Devotion. Loyalty. Need. Desire. Warmth. Lust. Faith. Passion. Hunger. Life. Home. Love. So much love.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hutch struggles to speak around the knot of emotion in his throat and to put everything — a duplicate of what he heard from Starsky plus an invitation — into the name of the most important person in his life: \u201cStarsk.\u201d When he sees white teeth split the shadows of Starsky\u2019s face, he knows Starsky has read him loud and clear.<\/span><\/p>\n

Starsky jumps into bed and he laughs with unbridled joy, pulls Hutch into a bear hug and Hutch immediately reciprocates. Both laughing, they roll around on the bed for a few moments. Then they stop, look at each other, grin like the smitten fools they are. A few more moments, they kiss, the start of the redefining of their partnership.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Author’s Note<\/span><\/strong>:\u00a0 Thanks to Suzan for her input. The song Hutch refers to is Something\u2019s Coming<\/em><\/strong> from West Side Story<\/em><\/strong> (click here for the\u00a0lyrics<\/strong><\/span>)<\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0 Uff da!<\/em><\/strong> is an expression of dismay, bafflement, or surprise. Of Norwegian origin, it\u2019s frequently used by Scandinavian Americans, including those in Hutch\u2019s home state.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Click here to read the prequel.\u00a0 Starsky Well, Pop, it\u2019s almost 1:30 and I\u2019m still awake and it ain\u2019t for lack of tryin\u2019. I can blame the heat, but it ain\u2019t that. Hutch knows I\u2019m hiding something. I was kinda … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fic","category-sfw","category-slash"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=197"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":418,"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197\/revisions\/418"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=197"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=197"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/solstice.starskyhutchcalendar.net\/2020\/calendar\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}