No Homo

Chapter 17

Dave's POV

For a few weeks, John had been acting really weird. He was acting awkward around me, and I wasn't sure why. I had asked him on multiple occasions if he was okay or if there was something wrong but he said he was just fine. I didn't think I had done anything to make him be awkward around me, but I wasn't sure. I was worried that there was something really wrong and, while I believed that a person will tell you when they're ready, I needed to make sure that something bad hadn't happened. I figured I would talk to Rose about it. She would most likely know, and she would either tell me what's going on, or she would tell me to wait to hear it from John. I called her and waited for her to pick up.

"Hello, Dave."

"Hey Rose. I wanted to talk to you about John."

"Go on."

"Well, lately he's been acting weird. He's always awkward around me, and I've tried asking him if anything's wrong and if he's okay, but he tells me that he's fine and then he'll ask why there would be anything wrong. I'm just worried about him."

"Oh, I see. How long has this been going on ?"

"A few weeks."

"Ah yes. He probably won't like that I'm telling you this, but I feel he needs a bit of a... push, if you will. Sort of a nudge to do something because I have noticed he's basically freaking out, sort of going out of his mind, in a way."

"Rose, you're saying a bunch of words, but, seriously, is there something wrong ?"

"No, I wouldn't really say wrong but maybe not exactly peachy."

"Well, then why won't he talk to me about it ?"

"Because he's scared. He doesn't really need to be, but he doesn't know what I know or see what's going on the way I do."

"What is he scared of ?"

"Well, that's the heart of the matter. What have you told him about yourself ?"

"Uhh not much, why ?"

"But exactly how much ? For instance, have you told him that you're gay ?"

"Oh no, not that much."

"Well, that is a part of why he is scared."

"Because I haven't told him a lot about me ?"

"In a way, yes. But, like I said, that's only a part. He is also scared of himself."

"What ? Why ?"

"Dave, I can't help but notice that you are very insistent about finding everything out. You've been asking a lot of questions, which seems just a tad out of character for you. It's very clear that you care about John, but in what way ?"

"What do you mean ?"

"I mean, do you have feelings for him that are a bit more than 'bro-like'?"

"Knowing you, you probably already know."

"How interesting."

"Are you going to tell me why John's scared of himself, or will I have to wait until he finally decides to tell me ?"

"Well you see, this new information makes things more interesting. Besides, I can tell you right now that without help, John is not likely to tell you anything about what is going on. So, I am going to help him by giving him the initial start he needs, though he probably will not be grateful immediately. Hopefully he'll end up appreciating the gesture. Your 'best-bro' is not exactly how you know him to be."