Pornstar (hiatus)

Chapter 26

Warren's heart nearly skipped a few beats, and he actually had to gasp for air because he had forgotten to breathe.

While he stood there, staring at the man he had adored for so many years, he suddenly realized he didn't look all that much like his boss after all. Though Tanner and Jack had a similar hairstyle and body type, their facial features were quite different. Had he simply never paid attention to Jack's face...?! Or had he really been so drunk and desperate that night that he had confused these two completely different men?!

Tanner's features were far more elegant, and he was generally more handsome. What was going on?
Jack had always been the hottest person Warren had ever seen, so why did he suddenly pale in comparison to Tanner...?
Was he really less attractive, or had Warren's feelings simply shifted so much that he considered him less attractive than before?

For a few minutes, Warren simply stood there, in the kitchen tile section, watching while Jack Longhorn inspected random kitchen tiles, apparently unable to decide on one, until a little girl, no older than 5 or 6, suddenly ran down the aisle towards him.

"Daddy, look what we found!" She said excitedly, holding something up for him that Warren wasn't able to identify.
A moment later, she was followed by a young woman with a cart.

As if in slow motion, Warren watched as the pornstar picked up the little girl while they both laughed and said something Warren wasn't paying attention to. Once the woman reached them, they began picking out their kitchen tiles together.

Jack Longhorn was gay for pay: he was a straight man who acted in gay porn. He was married and had a little daughter. He was a completely different person than Warren had always taken him for. He wasn't at all the fantasy Warren had been pining after all these years. He was an ordinary straight guy.

After picking out their tiles, the little family slowly moved away down the aisle, leaving Warren behind on his own, smiling like an idiot while he processed all the information he had just acquired.
He suddenly felt so incredibly happy. As if a giant problem that had been weighing on him for over a month had dissolved, leaving him feeling light, relieved and... free.

~*~

Tristan checked his watch again. Where had Warren gone? He had left at least ten minutes ago. Had he gotten lost?

Meanwhile, Tristan had looked through all the rows of seed packs, picked out a few, and asked one of the shop assistants where they could find blueberries and raspberries.

In that moment, a delighted Warren with a huge grin ran down the aisle towards him, only coming to a breathless halt once he reached Tristan, who gave him a surprised, amused look.

"What's up?" Tristan asked with a laugh.

"Nothing, I just love Home Depot!" Warren laughed, grinning as if he had just won the lottery.

Tristan nodded with another laugh. "Did you find something interesting?"

Warren shook his head happily. "No, I just meant in general. It's such an awesome store. I've never been here before, but I love it!"

Tristan nodded with a bright smile, infected by Warren's random happy moment. "I found out that they have no blueberries yet, but they do have raspberries. Shall we go take a look?" he suggested, gesturing towards where the shop assistant had told him the raspberries were located.

"Yes, yes, yes! Let's get raspberries!" Warren clapped his hands happily, jumping along Tristan who pushed the cart. What had suddenly happened to make Warren so giddy?
"Oooh, what seeds did you get?" he continued happily, reaching into the cart to look through the seeds.