oh my god, they were neighbors

ezra and mateo

Ezra was different. Anyone who knew him—which, granted, was a very small selection of people—could tell. When Ezra returned to work a few days later,  Jessie noticed, and acknowledged this:

"You look different, Ezra," she told him, as she stocked shelves in the candy aisle. She glanced up at him as she crouched on the floor. "New haircut?"

"Nah. I'm figuring shit out, Jess," Ezra replied, smiling.

"Huh. Well, same." She sighed. "Quentin and I broke up. I think he's gonna go work in San Diego. I lost most of my scholarships."

Ezra's smile dissipated. "Oh, shit. Sorry."

"No. Absolutely don't be. You were right about Quentin, he's a jerk," Jessie countered earnestly. She continued to stock the shelves, laser focused. "I guess I was trying to make the situation make sense. If I loved him, it wouldn't be so embarrassing for me. But in the end he was just an unprofessional dick that took advantage of me. Plus, I still get to go to UCLA."

"Well, damn." Ezra nodded. "I am sorry. But, you know. I'm glad you're done with him. And that UCLA is letting you stay."

"Me too," Jessie said. She stood up and cracked her back, then looked at Ezra. A small smile worked its way onto her face. "So what's up with you? I need some more good news. Obviously shit's been kinda weird for me lately."

Ezra had no reservations about rambling anymore. "Well, Brawley went like shit because Mateo's dad was a complete asshole. I called my dad, and he hates me, but I'm happy about it," Ezra said. "And Mateo and I are dating. I think that's the main stuff."

"Holy shit. And I thought my life was crazy," Jessie said, laughing a little. Then, what Ezra said seemed to register with her. She punched Ezra's arm lightly. "Oh my God! Finally! I've had enough of your friends-with-benefits bullshit."

"It was never your business, you know," Ezra replied.

"I'm your friend, Ezra. Of course it was."

Ezra wanted to complain, but he didn't bother, because he liked Jessie too much to argue with her. He kept working with Jessie for the following hours, and the two talked more than they ever had before about nothing of exceptional importance. One of the last conversations they had before the end of their shift pertained to their futures.

"You're not going to work at 7-Eleven forever, Ezra," Jessie called to him, as he cleaned a spilled slurpee from the ground.

He threw a glance back at her. "Sure fucking feels like it sometimes."

Jessie laughed. "Oh, come on. You know, I've been in Hollywood a few times, and there's this LGBT center there. Maybe they're hiring."

"You're suggesting this just because I'm gay?" Ezra asked.

"Kind of. But I think you could make a good counselor, and I think that's like, most of what they do there." Jessie shrugged. "I mean, I'm sure you could always keep doing what you do now: mopping up spills and stocking aisles until you're 70 or dead."

"Okay. Maybe I'll call them," Ezra conceded.

"Good. Just don't forget I exist?"

Ezra smiled. "As much as I'd like to, I don't think I could if I tried."

    Just as Ezra had, Mateo saw great changes in the following days. He asked Ezra to go on what he called a 'real date', as if Ezra hadn't considered anything before real. Still, such a date happened to entail going to the Santa Monica Pier, which had, up to this point, been a place Mateo supposedly tried to avoid. But perhaps his disdain when it came to crowds was beginning to cease and wither away, just as other fears and worries had recently. Either way, Ezra didn't dare ask.