Blue (boyxboy)

XVII

CONT. DIRECTLY FROM THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER

[X]

"Alright. From the beginning," Abel repeats, crunching the dry leaves under his fingers. "I guess it started at the beginning of senior year. I was done being in the closet. I'd told everyone who I thought should really know that I was gay-- my family, my closest friends, my dog. It was just time to go public.

"The only problem with being publicly gay and single is that it's basically the same as being closeted and single. Nobody knows, and it isn't like you can just go around telling strangers that you're gay without looking like an arrogant asshole. I was a bit underwhelmed when it wasn't as big as coming out to people one on one. So, I decided that the next thing for me to do as a newly out gay boy was to get a boyfriend.

"I remember that I had all these plans. We'd be that couple that everyone sort of hated because they were always together, or touching one another, or sharing drinks, or whatever. Sickeningly sweet, but consistent enough that you said 'Aww,' every once in a while. I basically wanted to rub it everyone's faces because I was so excited to be able to do those kinds of things now. And because I was kind of a little shit," Abel laughs. "So, I was looking for a boyfriend. My pals knew that I was officially on the market, and they had this whole screening process where they would send me on blind dates with strangers. It was horrid.

"Then, one day, I was coming back from buying lunch off campus, because I was cool like that, and I spotted this kid, sitting alone. That was so bizarre because the school was so small, and there were so many kids, it's nearly impossible to get a table to yourself. You've been in the lunchroom; it's chaos. So there's just this cute little blonde kid sitting alone, with all of this great, long hair and these fantastic blue eyes, and he's just an angel. I was intrigued.

"I sat with him, just to talk to him and try and figure out why he was alone. Like, did he smell, was he totally insane? Nope. Damon just appreciated a good video game and got good grades. Nothing more. So, I kept sitting with him, and we talked some more. I got to know him." Abel clears his throat and takes a sip of coffee. "Sorry. I haven't spoken for this long in a while, so excuse my voice if it starts to fade. This is just a story I need to tell in its entirety." Kevin smiles, nodding, and holds Abel's hand.

"Where was I? Oh, right. I introduced him to the guys, aka the cool senior guys, and he looked so pleased. It made me feel warm inside, you know? And I guess somewhere in those first few days I started to like him a little. I started inviting him to everything I could, just to hang out with him more. I couldn't get a read on whether or not he liked me back for maybe the first month. Then came Gil's New Year's Party. When the ball dropped, he kissed me. Just turned and kissed me, imagine that." Kevin raises his hand, and Abel nods in acknowledgement, amused. "Yes, Blue?"

"He kissed you first?" Kevin's head is cocked to the side, his cloud of curls tilted wildly.

"Yep."

"Okay, just fact checking. Continue."

"Alright. After the kiss, things changed between us. In public, he blamed the whole thing on too many shots and his lack of beer pong skills, but when we were alone, he told me otherwise. We started dating in secret soon afterwards, because he was really closeted. Even though it was basically the opposite of the relationship I'd dreamed of, I went with it; I was head over heels for him. In school and around acquaintances we pretended to be close friends, but he was always holding my hand under a table or standing too close to be platonic.

"When our relationship got a little more heated, sexually speaking, we had a few choice places picked out for, you know, canoodling and that. My room, his room, those were optimal. But then, the choir room, the bleachers-- Oh, you know that shed by the track field?"