The Pros and Cons of Being Outed | Peterick

Chapter Twelve

Pete was flabbergasted. "You're joking," he stammered.

"I'm not laughing," Patrick sighed. The rest of the car ride was pretty much silent, with the occasional answer to questions Pete's mom would ask.

When they made it to Pete's house, Pete ran out and opened the car door for Patrick. "Thanks," he sighed, walking out. Pete nodded silently, shutting the door behind him. He could tell Patrick wasn't in a good mood.

When they made it to Pete's room, Patrick silently sat down on his bed, turning his head to look out of the window.

"What's wrong?" Pete asked, putting his hand on his shoulder. "I thought you wanted to know who he is."

"I did," Patrick agreed quietly. "But... It's almost like I feel betrayed, you know?" He turned to face Pete. "He's known who I am for a while and sought me out to be friends, and we were. We were friends, and this entire time he's had different intentions."

"True," Pete sighed. "But who else could it have been anyway? We already knew beforehand that Brendon's kind of reckless."

"It makes sense," Patrick nodded. Deep down inside, he wished it didn't. He wanted to be able to pretend that Brendon had always been his friend, and there was nothing else there. No intentions to be more, because that's what started this whole mess.

"What do I do?" Patrick asked, still confused and lost. "I rejected him, and there's really no telling what he'll do now."

"Just do nothing," Pete answered simply. "You just gotta let it happen. Life has a plan for you."

They were two different people. Patrick liked plans and knowing what to do, but Pete didn't put enough effort or thought into those kinds of things. He's too casual and laid-back, while Patrick's slightly uptight.

"That wasn't very helpful," Patrick muttered, but he let it go and scooted closer to Pete. "Let's do something else. Thinking is tiring."

Pete smirked at him. "I know something else we can do that'll make you tired."

Patrick loved how sly he was. "I think that'll do the trick," he agreed.

They put Pete's hypothesis to the test, and it sure did work. Hopefully there wasn't too much noise.

---

Patrick still wasn't sure if Pete's advice would be helpful. There were too many What If's for him to feel comfortable, so Patrick figured there was one other person he could trust with this.

Gerard was a sensible person, mostly. The only downside is that he's slightly dramatic. Patrick trusted him to know what to do because he's been in plenty of weird situations with friends, and he's sure this whole Brendon thing counts as a weird situation.

Patrick pulled him aside after school and shared the story of how he found out Brendon was "Satan". He shared how he had felt and then asked what he should do.

"What if he's actually a good guy?" Gerard asked, frowning. "I'm sure I'd manage to fuck up like he did. Maybe he deserves a second chance."

"He doesn't really seem guilty about what he did," Patrick pointed out. Gerard nodded, looking slightly disappointed by that.

"So, no second chance?" Gerard asked.

Patrick didn't really know if Brendon deserved one. Besides, he wouldn't get what he wanted anyway. Patrick knew without a doubt that he would never consider Brendon in a romantic way. He has Pete, and Pete's the one he wants.

Can Patrick trust him to be his friend?

"I don't know," Patrick admitted. "Maybe as a friend, but definitely not as a boyfriend or something."

He seemed particularly sure of that, causing Gerard to raise an eyebrow. "You're not a single pringle anymore, are you?" Gerard realized, and his eyes widened. "Oh! Tell me who!"

Patrick was hesitant for a moment. It was true that him and Pete were planning to come out about it to their friends soon, but soon was different than now. Besides, it's not only his decision. Pete has the right to be there and the right to choose who knows, just like he does.

"Eventually you'll find out," Patrick shrugged. "Don't tell the others I got myself a boyfriend, though. I want it to be a surprise."

Gerard nodded, still appearing excited. "Well, otherwise I'd just say to give it time. I think it's ultimately up to Brendon at this point."

Well, that just sounded like what Pete had said, so Patrick decided to relax now that two people had assured him. If they were confident that things wouldn't be bad, then he would be too.

"Thank you so much for the help," Patrick smiled.

"No problem," Gerard smiled back.

So Patrick started to play the waiting game.