Carter's world is about to change. He is moving way from his hometown and all of the friends that he grew up with. However, there is something about him that his friends don't know... Carter is bisexual. He's endured years of homophobic comments...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Tyler's Second Afterglow
It was all I could do to not message him as soon as I got home that night. I followed Tyler's instructions though and didn't text him. I felt so bad for hurting him. I sat on my bed. After a few seconds I got up and went to my computer. I stared at the screen for a few seconds. I stood up and grabbed my headphones. I needed to go for a walk. I headed out the door with no real destination in mind.
I made it all the way to the edge of town by the lake. The night air was helping my mood. It was cool and crisp. Crickets were chirping like crazy. I focused on my breathing. I started down the trail that led around the lake. It was dark. I found the darkness comforting, the trees wrapping their branches above me.
My phone rang in my pocket, startling me. "Who the fuck is calling me?" I grabbed it and was surprised to see 'Tyler'.
"Hello?" I answered. My voice was already starting to waiver.
"Hey." He paused. I could tell that he was trying his hardest not to break down. "I need to ask you a few questions if that's cool?"
"Of course Tyler... would you like to do it in person or over the phone?" I was fine with either but wanted him to be as comfortable as possible.
"Can we start on the phone?" he sounded unsure.
"Yeah. What's up?"
"So when you said you fooled around with the whole gang, who exactly did you mean?" he sounded scared about the answer.
"Well. I'm going to tell you, but I hope that you can keep the names between you and I." he didn't respond. I hoped that meant yes. "You, Jack, Dylan, Hayden, Skylar and Connor."
"Holy shit. Are you serious?" he sounded beyond shocked.
"Yeah dude. I wouldn't really call any of them straight." I didn't want to get into attaching specific labels to any of them.
"Are any of them gay?"
"I can't really answer that. I didn't really get into discussing labels with them. And honestly I don't think any of them are really sure where they fall yet. But I wouldn't be surprised if at least one of them settles on identifying as gay." I'm not sure if that was the answer that he was looking for but it was the truth.
"How did we never figure this out?" I was pretty sure that was a rhetorical question. He wasn't looking for an answer... he was just shocked.
"Can I be honest with you for a second dude?" I needed to get it off my chest.
"Of course."
"This all started because I was mad." I admitted.
"What do you mean?"
"You know how I feel. I hear the things that the guys say when we are hanging out together. Does a single night go by without some sort of derogatory comment about being gay being thrown out?" My voice betrayed my anger.
