The Closet Chronicles

7. Fake It Till You Make It

"I'm heading to school, mom," I said, opening the door.
"Have a good day, hun! Have fun at the Heterosexuality and Why it's Right For You talk!"
"I will." I walked out the door, and went to meet Jennifer at the end of the street.
"Hey, girl!" she said when she saw me.
"Hey girl! Ready for another crappy day?"
"Let's do this! If we can get through Fridays, we can get through anything!"
"Except our parents!" We both burst out laughing, and started walking to school.
When we got there, we could see the auditorium being set up with balloons, snacks, and games. It seemed that the school was trying to scare kids into being straight. Some of the games included pin the homosexual to the stake and stuff the gay in the closet. They were also setting up the live-stream cameras, and giving out the rewards to those who offered to operate them.
Just like every Friday, all of the students headed to homeroom. Unless you were ill or out of town, attendance at the talk was mandatory. The school actually had officers of the law go and check your home if you were not present. They took attendance in homeroom and in the auditorium, and there was a quiz after every talk. For every question you got wrong on the quiz, your period two teacher took half of a mark off of your next test. The talk was the most serious event in the school, other than the anti-pride march in June.
Jennifer and I had the same homeroom teacher, so we walked to class together. Once we sat down, our teacher came up to us.
"Hi guys!" she said. "The school has a new policy! How long have you been in a heterosexual relationship with each other?"
"Nine months," I replied, looking at Jennifer confusedly.
"Wow guys! Congratulations! You each get four lollipops! The new policy is that for every two months that students are in heterosexual relationships, they'll get a lolli! I'll make sure that you each get another on the first Friday of June!" With that she skipped off, looking for other straight kids to reward with sugar.
After attendance was taken, the class headed towards the auditorium. Just like every week, it was decorated in blacks, greys, and whites. As the school filed in, teachers started handing out the programs, as well as food tickets. Each person got three free tickets, and they could buy more for a dollar a piece. All proceeds went towards our cafeteria food.
"All right everyone, pipe down," said our principal, Mr. Hitchcock. Our school had never had a female principal.
"Listen up, y'all. This week we will be covering many different topics, so pay attention. We are also handing out free lunch tickets that cover a week's worth of cafeteria food to anyone who gets one hundred percent on their quiz. This includes answering the bonus question correctly. Now, without further ado, please welcome our first presenter, Al Fenderson! Al survived a homosexual experience, and has since changed his ways after discovering how wrong it was! Tell us how you changed from homosexual to homophobe, Al!" And that's how the hour was every Friday. A homophobic talk show. There were only two things that got me through it. Jennifer, and the food. I would gorge myself after every talk. Food always made me feel better as I was eating. My thighs didn't like it that much, though.
Finally, we were let out of the auditorium to our period two classes to take the quiz. I had never gotten a single question wrong, and neither had Jen. The more questions you got wrong, the gayer people assumed you were, so we never took any chances. However, I almost screwed up that day, because I was sitting next to Zak, and I kept getting distracted.
Once Jennifer and I had received our lunch tickets, we headed to English, a sadly Zak-free class. We were reading Romeo and Juliet. I was Romeo, and Jennifer was Juliet, as the class so humorously decided.
The whole book made me reflect upon my life. Mercutio seemed to be in love with Romeo, as I had felt about so many straight guys before. As we were reading the ending, I had an epiphany. The Romeo kills himself to be with Juliet. Juliet kills herself to be with Romeo. Amid the flood of tears that the class had become, I came to the realization that true love only comes once. People would rather die than let it go. And the way that I felt about Zak, I wanted to be able to have my chance. I had had crushes before, but none like this. The thought of him made me shiver and smile. My heart filled with longing at the mention of his name. I needed him. I was addicted to the thought of his lips on mine. If I had to end my life as I had known it by coming out to be happy, it was worth the risk. I knew what I had to do.
It was a very long day of waiting for the bell to ring. Drama was especially difficult, because Zak and I were put together for yet another improv, this one about a man murdering two gay guys. A boy named Jeremy pulled the short straw, so he was given the role of the murderer. That meant that Zak and I played the gay guys. I told Jen that I needed to go home by myself that night, and I'd see her tomorrow for our weekly ice cream date. She was confused, but I wasn't going to tell her why. I knew she would try to stop me.
I walked in the door, and found my parents having an iced tea in the living room. I dropped my bag, and went to sit beside them.
"You know, next month is pride month," I said quietly, looking down at the floor.
"Anti-Pride month, dear," my mother replied.
"No. Pride month. LGBT Pride month."
"What has gotten into you?" my father asked, frowning. "Anti-Pride month. A month of happiness, and protesting against homosexuality!" Suddenly my body was gripped with rage.
"Pride month!" I screamed. "A month of celebrating who you are, and who you love! A month of knowing that it's okay to be gay! A month that tells you that not everyone is straight and that it's not a bad thing! A month of excitement, and rainbows, and marches through the streets of your town, wearing ridiculous clothing! A month for equality and acceptance. A month for me!"
"A month for you? What the hell are you saying?" my mom gasped.
"I'm gay! I'm a homo-freaking-sexual!" I yelled, tears streaming down my face. "I don't care anymore. I can't hide any longer. I'm in love, and I'm not afraid. You can't change me, so just accept it! I'm gay!"
"No! No you're not! Get downstairs into your room. You are not leaving this house! You will be homeschooled by a tutor! We will get you the help you need to become a human again!" My mother all but threw me down the stairs, and locked the door behind me.