Rich and George: The Power Couple

Rich's POV: Shit, I Like Him

 George never responded well to when I complimented him, which I guess I understood. It irked me that he thought I was teasing him, when in reality, I wanted him for myself.

He sat in front of me in one of my classes in middle school. Not directly in front, but on a diagonal so that I could see his face. Back then he wore thin-wired glasses, which were always sliding down his nose. He had curious chocolate eyes, and his lips looked so... kissable.

"Rich, eyes on your own papers," my teacher would scold on numerous occasions. And every time, George would look at me like I did something wrong. And I hated it.

"George!" He was rushing down the hall, and he got faster when he heard me call. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Depends, are you gonna make fun of me?" He pushed his glasses up his nose, his eyes filled with concern.

"No, I'm not." He stopped at his locker, making an effort not to look at me as he grabbed his books. "I just wanted to say that I really like your outfit today."

"Oh, really." Now he was looking at me, his curls swooping over his forehead. His expression was stern, and unmoving. I really did like his outfits, that particular one was a blue collared shirt with a pink bow tie and khakis.

"Yeah, really." I met his gaze. I just wanted to put my hands on him, pull him close to me and maybe even kiss his neck. I know, thirteen year olds have the weirdest fantasies, but you probably would too if you were me. "You're handsome, George, I know you don't believe me, but--"

"Okay, this is where I'm gonna stop you," he snapped. "I need you to stop calling me handsome and complimenting me. You've been doing it a lot since I came out, and I know you don't mean it. You're a good actor, but not good enough."

I felt my heart sink. I tried to reply, but he hastily walked away to his friends. Henry met me in the hallway, berating me as usual.

"He's just a dumb loser, don't waste your time on him," he told me. I wanted to slap him.

I walked inside the house to find Josh on the couch making out with some girl. Typical. Scoffing, I walked into my bedroom, slamming the door behind me. I needed to think.

"Ricky!" Pop walked in without knocking. Dad was standing behind him. "How many times have I told you not to slam the door?" I groaned, falling back onto my bed. "Come on, sit up. I wanna talk."

"Pop, I kinda want to be alone," I grumbled.

"You can be alone after you tell us what's going on with you," Dad replied, walking into the room. "Just because you're in eighth grade doesn't mean you're too good for us."

I sat up in bed, pushing my hair out of my face. The two of them looked very concerned. "Sorry," I lamented. "I'm actually glad you guys are here, I have to tell you something."

"Oh?" Pop asked. "Did you fail a test or something?"

"It's a bit more serious than that," I chuckled. "I finally know this for sure, I was confused for a while."

"Rich, what is it?" Dad asked politely.

"I'm into boys," I blurted out. They both looked surprised. "Yep, boys. Boys make me happy. Any questions?"

"Jesus Christ, kid, you come out to your gay dads and ask us if we have questions?" Pop looked bewildered.

"Thank the lord, girls are awful," Dad sighed, relieved. "Just ask Josh."

"Oh, God. Ew." They both laughed, then I continued. "Anyway, I really like George, I told you about him. He just came out as gay."

"Well, that's convenient," Pop shrugged.

"Well, sort of. I keep telling him I like his outfits, and calling him handsome, but he thinks I'm teasing him."

Dad looked at me thoughtfully. "You haven't done anything about Henry, have you?" I shook my head. "That's probably why, kiddo. He's sensitive, it can't be easy for him to be openly gay and get teased all the time."

"He got so mad today when I complimented him," I sighed, tucking my hair behind my ear. "He hates me, and I don't want him to."

"I can't believe you have the guts to say that to him," Pop exclaimed. "Really, considering that you like him so much."

"I just want him to know." I took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, can I just be alone for a while? I need to think."

"Of course, kiddo." Dad kissed my forehead. "Congrats on coming out to your parents." As soon as the door closed, I burst into tears. I took out my phone and put on "Addicted" by Simple Plan, blasting it through my bluetooth speaker. I wanted to play it for George, so he would know how I felt.

Even then, he probably wouldn't listen.