Me: …Why did that sound so suggestive?
“Little gentler, please? It really hurts…” |
winced.
The door slammed open again. Ethan strode in,
face like thunder, and sat at my old desk. He
tossed his American History book on the table,
opened his laptop, and started typing, as if he
were back in his own room.
I checked the time. 7:30 pm. On the dot.
Impressive dedication.
“Marked it all. Just memorize it,” I said, pushing
the textbook towards him. The retake was a
month away. Maybe the school was worried we
wouldn’t pass, because they gave us plenty of
time. I had meticulously marked all the key
points, even highlighting a few essential ones
so Ethan wouldn’t get overwhelmed. He could
literally memorize one sentence a day and still
pass. Guaranteed.
Ethan ignored the book, staring at me. After a
long moment, he mumbled, “I haven’t been
sleeping well.”
<
And? Was I supposed to tuck him in now?
“Caleb,” he said, his voice low, “this isn’t right.”
“What isn’t right?” I frowned.
Ethan didn’t answer, his fingers flying across
the keyboard. The cursor blinked on the screen, finally settling on two words: “Everything.
Wrong.”
- 19.
I figured once the textbook was marked, Ethan
would stop coming. But every night at 7:30, he
showed up like clockwork. I really didn’t
understand straight guys.
“Ethan, have you seen the campus forums?” I
asked one evening. “Leo and I are the hot new
gay couple, the campus perverts. You keep
showing up here, you’ll be pervert number
three.”
Ethan’s hands clenched, and a flicker of
conflict crossed his face. He never seemed
comfortable in 601, his feet always pointed
towards the door, like he was ready to bolt.
Honestly, being outed and ostracized sucked. It
744
felt like a bad breakup. But I didn’t hate Chad or the others. Avoiding “different” people is
human nature. Straight guys being
homophobic? Totally understandable.
What I didn’t understand was Ethan. A
homophobic straight guy, actively inserting himself into a “gay” situation. Why?
I got no answer. Ethan just changed his arrival time to 8:00, slightly less peak traffic.
It was bizarre. It was like he had our class
schedules. He never came when one of us was
alone, only when we were both there. Especially evenings. He’d arrive at 7:00 sharp, game or study until lights out, actually, no… until Leo fell asleep. Then he’d leave.
After a week of this, I turned to Leo. “Dude, do you think Ethan has a sleep–watching kink or something?” I’d just showered, hair still wet, and walked straight into Leo mid–workout. Eight perfectly sculpted abs greeted me. “Damn, Leo! You’re ripped!” I grinned, reaching out to give his stomach a playful swipe. The
feel of solid muscle was…nice. I reached for
:
A
<
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another swipe when my wrist was caught in a
vice–like grip.
I looked up. Leo’s expression was tight. His
Adam’s apple bobbed. “Caleb,” he said, his voice low, “have some self–awareness.”
