See, that was all yesterday. The perfect day. Except , of course, the part where I came home and got my ass beat for staying out too late. That's just what moms do around here, especially mine. By "here", I mean our neighborhood. Our white, Christian neighborhood. But I guess every rule has exceptions, and I guess my dark skinned family is the exception to this rule. We've been lucky enough to not be shouted at, just for looking like this, but only because we attend church as often as possible. I don't particularly enjoy it, but you can't just not go. You'll be seen as an outcast in the community, and I already feel like one enough.
Mason Greenly, my boyfriend, could never feel like an outcast. Its not possible. He fits in so well with everyone, yet he's so different. He's special, but he doesn't stick out. I am the exact opposite. My thick, untamed, curly, dark monster - which I suppose is "hair", my boring brown eyes, and, of course, my dark skin. Every flaw of mine sticks out when I'm standing next to all the white boys in church. Me, Anthony Parker, standing next to - or as I like to call it, being compared to - the beautiful Mason Greenly, early on a Sunday morning.
I don't think I've explained me and Mason's relationship very well. Around our parents, we're friends. Alone, we're ourselves. Neither of our parents, nor the entire neighborhood is even remotely pro LGBT. The opposite, really. Which is a problem, because I am a boy who loves boys, and that's pretty gay if you ask me. Obviously, I prefer to be alone with him. Where I can laugh and cuddle and smile with him. Where nobody can see us. Where we have the entire world to ourselves.
There's only some days that times like those are even possible, though. Like yesterday. But even then I was questioned about my whereabouts, and what Mason and I were really doing. Both of our parents couldn't even imagine their son being gay, which I suppose is both good and bad in multiple ways. They'd never guess I kissed Mason Greenly on the roof of an abandoned building at midnight last night. But if they ever did, we'd both be in a world of hurt. •
