Boyfriend? Never Heard Of That Website...

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Instantly, his eyes become filled with tears. "I'm sorry, Charlie," he whispers, and clears his throat. "I've been neglecting you. Not keeping up with my brotherly duties. Not keeping up with my best friend duties. I'm so sorry," his voice is clearer now. I nod, accepting his apology. It's not like he needed to apologise. I knew that something was wrong. "It's okay," I whisper. "But what is it? What's up? Why are you doing this to yourself?" His eyes become clouded over, and the tears begin to flow. I try to swallow the lump in my throat. I hate seeing Oli cry. It makes him look so vulnerable, too vulnerable.

"You'd hate me if I told you, lil sis," he croaks through the tears. "Oli, tell me, I need to know why you're barely eating, why you've been out so much, why you're drinking again and why you're crying right now," I plead. He bows his head. When he lifts it back up, I notice a battle occurring in his eyes. It's like he wants to tell me, but something is stopping him.

"Please tell me, it can't be that bad," I plead again. Wrong move. Oli's eyes ignite with anger. The rage quickly floods through his features. He stands up suddenly. "It is bad," he shouts, angrily stomping around the room. "It's terrible. You'll hate me. All my friends do. So who's to say that my family won't either? Just leave it, Charlotte. Leave it," he snarls. I whimper, backing away. He called me by my full name. And I was so close, so close to finding out. I decide to push him a little further, though, because I'm angry too. I'm angry that my brother has turned into a shell and now he's shouting at me as if it's my fault. "I won't leave it!" I shout, standing up too. "I want to know, Oliver. Don't try to hide things from me!"

"Fine then. You want to know? You sure? Fine, I'll tell you. I will." He's right up in my face this time, staring me down. I stare right back. This is a new experience for both of us. But we're both too far gone to calm down and apologise. "I'm a freaking faggot!" He roars. His expression softens and the rage leaves him as he realises what he's said. "I'm a faggot. I'm gay. I like guys. Say it any way, its still the same. So do it, slap me, kick me out, cause I know that you won't want anything to do with me now. Go on. Slap me," he whispers, his voice becoming slightly louder at the end. I stare at him in shock. He's... gay?

I step forward, pulling him to me, in the tightest hug I think I've ever given. "I'm not gonna slap you," I whisper in his ear. "You're my brother. I love you. And I'm not homophobic. This doesn't change anything, apart from the fact that it'll be guys I'll have to scare off, not girls." He manages a smile and even a slight chuckle at the last part. "Okay?" I ask, pulling away. He nods. "Thank you, Charlie, you know exactly what to say," he smiles. It's genuine, which is great. "How about that movie?" I ask. "That sounds good, but first I'm going to order pizza and you're gonna tell me what you've been doing while I've been wallowing in self pity," he replies. We grin. I'm glad. The old Oli is back.

The next morning, I send a message to Quinn, telling her all about what happened yesterday. I go downstairs to get a packet of Skittles and when I return, Quinn's sent me a message back.

quinnissecretlybatman: 'Its great that you've found out whats wrong with him :) My brother's gay too.'

What? She never told me this.

charlieloveswaffles: 'What? You never told me that!'

She replies less than a minute later.

quinnissecretlybatman: 'I didn't think it was important. I don't care who he loves, as long as they make him happy and don't hurt him. Then I'd have some serious ass to kick.'

I smiled. Quinn was great. I was a tiny bit worried that she would be homophobic, but it turns out she couldn't care less. We had a whole rant about homophobic people after that, making me feel even better. Quinn could really lift up my spirits. I decided to go and find Oli and suggest a walk out in the park, now that he was nearly back to normal.

Ten minutes later, we were dressed and walking down the street, arm-in-arm. I had even managed to get Oli to skip with me. I definitely knew that he was back. An old woman smiled as she walked past us and cooed, "You two make a lovely couple," to which Oli cockily replied, "I know, don't we?" He then kissed my forehead, making the woman swoon. She turned to me and said, "You're lucky to have him, dear," I nodded, my cheeks beet red. As soon as she had passed, I yanked my arm out of Oli's grasp and refused to talk to him the rest of the way to the park. That was mean, telling the woman that we were dating.

When we reached the park, Oli tapped my arm, screaming "Gotcha! You're it!" before taking off across the grass. I sighed. I was about to chase after him when I heard someone calling my name. I turned around and came face-to-face with Gabe. Well, this was awkward. I hadn't actually told him that I thought he was terrible in bed, so it was really only awkward for me. But I think by now I've conjured up enough awkwardness for both of us. "Hey," he smiled. "Uh, hi Gabe," I stuttered, looking out of the corner of my eye for Oli. Help me Oli! He was meant to know when I needed help. He should be here by now. Come on! "How are you?" Gabe asked, putting an arm around my shoulders and beginning to walk, so I had no choice but to follow.

"I'm alright, what about you?" I replied politely. Where are you Oli? Help! "Oh, you know, the usual," Gabe started. Oli? Hurry up! "Missing you, though," Gabe continued. Oli! Get your ass over here now! "You were fantastic in bed. When's round two?" Gabe finished, sending me a wink. Oli! Oliver! Help me! Ol- Suddenly, the devil himself appeared in front of us. "What are you doing, Charlie?" He asked. I sent him pleading looks with my eyes. Get me away from here Oli. "We're just taking a walk," Gabe answered for me. "Oh, I guess that's fine then," Oli replied. I scowled at him, narrowing my eyes into slits. He was clearly enjoying this. I could see that the corners of his mouth were slightly tilted up, indicating that he was trying not to laugh at my unfortunate predicament. "I'll see you around, Gabe. Later, Charlie," he said, beginning to walk away. He turned to look at us. I smiled, hoping that he was going to help me. I love you Oli!

"Don't forget to use a condom!" he shouted. Spoke too soon. Can I change my mind? I hate you. I will get you while you sleep, Oliver. I clenched my hands into fists. I'm gonna kill him when I get my hands on him. Gabe tightened his hold on me. "I guess round two is coming up. Let's go to my place this time," he whispered, trying his best to be seductive. It didn't work. I shivered in disgust, and noticing Gabe smirk, realised that he had mistaken it for a shiver of lust and anticipation. Eugh. I might just have to kick him in the balls and make a run for it. Would that get the message across? I hope so.

Up ahead of us, Oli stopped. Then he took his phone out of his back pocket. He read a text. I'm not sure if it was pretend or real. Turning back around, he told Gabe that I was needed and that I'd see him soon. Must've been a fake text. I silently thanked Oli, and pretended to be sad that I wouldn't get to spend time with Gabe, when really, I was jumping for joy. Not literally, obviously. Gabe said his goodbyes, kissed me full on the lips and then sauntered off. I felt like throttling him. He kissed me on the lips. On the lips! In front of my brother! The brother whom I have not mentioned the 'no strings attached' night of passion - well, afternoon, to be specific - we had shared! I was in deep shit. This would be incredibly awkward to try and explain.

Oli raised his eyebrows at me questioningly, but didn't say any more until we were back home. In the kitchen, he pointed to the table and chairs and ordered "Sit." Once I had indeed sat he slumped facing me and ordered "Spill." And spill I did. Every little detail. Including the sex. I mean, I was talking to a guy that had previously had sex with girls before figuring out his sexual orientation, so he would be able to criticise Gabe with me. When I had finished, he laughed. He laughed so hard that he was clutching his stomach and tears were rolling down his face. I was surprised he hadn't fallen off his chair yet. But I was also glad. This was the first time I had seen Oli laugh in weeks. It was a great feeling, knowing that I could make him laugh.

After his laughter subsided and he had wiped the tears away, Oli began to criticise Gabe's sexual technique. Apparently, everything he had done was wrong. Then he went all protective brother on me, asking if we had used a condom and the like. And yes, we had used a condom. I do not want to be eighteen and pregnant, thank you very much.