'To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.'
| three |
Bumper turns up ten minutes after I've finished with my homework. I know I have a few essays to write, so I tell him to go up to my room and turn the laptop on, so I can look up a few things. He hands me a tub of cookie dough ice-cream with a grin and then goes upstairs.
I pull out a lasagna from the freezer, putting the ice-cream in its place, and set it on the oven tray, ready for my mom and I tonight. I leave the kitchen, turning off the TV in the living room and I go upstairs to my room, where Bumper is, sitting on my bed, bouncing his feet on the floor.
I look at him weirdly, wondering what's up but I go over to my laptop and pull up a browser. Bumper will tell me what's going on soon.
I'm typing up an essay for History, about the first world war when he starts speaking, moaning about his parents and his life and school studies and I hear something about a pet, which surprises me because he hasn't got one. I continue typing, letting him get it all out. I faintly here the front door. Mom's home. Early, I might add.
He's talking about something confusing, kinda like he's changed the subject entirely, so I frown and stop typing. What is he on about? I turn around and cut him off.
''Are you okay?'' I ask and he just about explodes.
''No I am not fucking okay!'' he shouts, staring at me, his hazel eyes piercing through me. ''I am fucking gay, okay, no-one knows and I feel like shit. I am gay, I am fucking gay!'' he screams and collapses on my bed, still staring at me.
''Okay,'' I reply, staring back at him. I kinda gathered he was gay a while back, but his cover-ups were pretty convincing. Not enough though. Either he was gay or asexual, I had thought, ages ago. Not that being either of them is bad.
Bumper sits up, gaping. ''Okay? Just okay? No shouting or insulting or throwing me out? Just okay?''
I nod and shrug. ''I couldn't do that to my best friend, could I?''
With a happy yell, he leaps up and pulls me from my desk chair, nearly knocking it over, whirling me around, screaming happily. ''I am so glad you're my best friend!''
I laugh as he sets me down, my mind whirling. ''Thanks.''
''Am I that obvious though?'' he bites his bottom lip, making him look younger and more vulnerable. I shrug again, ''I don't know. But I've known you for years, I see how you act and stuff. And also, not looking at girls' boobs and asses... That kinda gave you away a bit. And when you never stare at the hottest girls in our school. Yeah.''
Bumper sighs and sits down on my bed again, rubbing his face with his hand. ''I haven't told my parents yet.''
I whistle under my breath. ''Wow. Good luck with that.'' I pull a face. I know what his parents are like. ''Is that why you bought your mom a present?''
His face creases up and he laughs, shaking his head. ''No. I went in there to buy a present because there's a cute guy working there and I'm sure he's gay too.''
I raise my eyebrows, a laugh working its way up my throat. ''That is so weird, you talking about a guy. No offense or anything.''
Bumper laughs and shrugs, ''None taken. And hey, now you can talk about guys with me.''
''No way, you'll steal them!'' I laugh, teasing him. ''Uhm, Bumper, you've gotta tell your parents.''
''I know, Indie, I know. It's just so... Ugh.''
