At the start of my 15 minute break, I got a facetime call. At first I thought it was Rin trying to make up for lost time but instead James the British Guy popped up on my screen. I looked at the wall behind me, seeing the graffiti dairy queen cone, and considered moving. But it’s not like I owned the poster. So I answered the call without another thought.

At the sight of me in my cow-spotted uniform, James burst out laughing. 

“Oh my gosh,” he gasped, ducking his head to reveal the back of a couch and a cityscape. “I suddenly really want ice cream.”

The brief glimpse into James’s place made me outrageously curious. I swear I saw the CN tower behind him, which would mean wherever he lived was in a prime spot. And very expensive.

I opened my mouth to ask but James was still laughing in British. I frowned and the jerk got even louder.

“Har har, making fun of the working class as a royal. Super original.”

His mouth closed with a click, mirth-filled eyes taking me in.

“I’m not even going to entertain the idea that I’m royalty,” he said. “And I’m not making fun of you. I think you look really cute in black and white.”

That’s kind of  . . .

“Shut up,” I replied, getting to hear some more of his British chuckles. 

James was really good at small talk, which I’m starting to think is a European thing. The easy exchange of questions and pleasantries helped distract me from his sudden compliment. As a straight cis man myself, I had no room to comment on queer things. 

However

I couldn’t help but wonder if James was trying to drop a hint. Or maybe even flirt with me. 

Being flirted with wasn’t unusual. I was incredibly handsome after all. But this would be the first time a guy flirted with me. If James was even flirting in the first place. Which he might not be.

“Elliot, time to get back on the clock!”

15 minutes went by way too fast. And I hadn’t even finished my grainola bar.

“You sound busy over there,” he smiled because there’s no way you didn’t hear my manager’s screech. “I’ll call you another time.”

“Yeah, I’ll be waiting by the phone.”

That was way too flirty for a straight guy. James didn’t react though, wishing me a good shift and hanging up in seconds. I’d just spent the good part of my break obsessing over whether the new student was flirting with me or not. And now, I’d have to get back to the front and greet the next pair of lovebirds on an unsuccessful date.

I can’t wait for work to be over.

—————

Seeing Colby’s text last night about coming over was as common as getting an amber alert.  The guy took Friday night pizza sessions very seriously and I was happy to make the 20-minute trip. His house was in a cozy residential spot filled with townhouses that made you forget you shared a wall with your neighbor. This late at night, the cozy reds and grays of the bricks helped the neighborhood not feel so creepy. 

Walking up the steps, I took a second to drag my shoes against the pale brown welcome mat like Ms Stevens instructed me to a couple years ago.

Then I knocked on the door and leant against the wall as patiently as I could. The four of us came over to Colby’s house so often, I should be able to just walk in. But I didn’t because the last time I tried, most of the afternoon was spent being lectured on the importance of boundaries and respect. 

I still didn’t understand that bit but I did start knocking again.

When the door swung open, instead of a freckled woman with dark hair, I saw a tall black teenager who managed to hold 2 family-sized soda bottles in one hand.

“Why did you answer the door?” I laughed, brushing past Tyler.

“I just came up here for drinks. Colby and Rin are downstairs with the Mario Kart.”

Right as he said it, I heard the vague sound of cheering and racecars. I peered around the stairs and down the hall for a second, searching anxiously.

“Mabel is upstairs. Colby said it was something about a call?”

“Oooh, do you think she has a date?”

For as long as we’ve known her, Mabel Stevens was single. But I could imagine that the dog dads she met at the vet were attracted to her stern voice and soft smile.

“I’d root for her if she did,” Tyler chuckled, starting down the basement stairs. “But don’t let Colby hear that.”

“Hear what?” 

Snapping his head back to look at us made Colby’s Luigi drive right off the track. Tyler and I didn’t have to come up with a lie because, after cursing, Colby was too focused on getting out of 10th place to remember what Tyler said in the first place. 

The Stevens’ basement was 10-year-old me’s dream spot. A huge room with a couch, bean bag chairs, a widescreen TV, and a bookshelf filled with video games and boardgames instead of books. Rin and Colby had decided against the couch to sit on the floor, knees close to hitting the switch on the carpeted floor in front of them.

I loved seeing Rin like he was now, eyes wide and excited, fingers frantically running over the small buttons on the switch controller. He was a pretty chill dude but his competitive streak always came first.

And he was even louder than Colby when his Bowser crossed the finish line, putting him in first place.

“Suck it, Colby! That’s 3 wins in a row,” he grinned, cackling when Colby did a great impression of the frowny emoji. “How could you let me beat you when you have this game in your house?”

“It’s been a while since I played,” Colby grumbled right before Luigi crossed the finish line in 8th. “Anyway, Elly just got here, he can go next.”

“I’m actually wiped after my shift. I’ll just watch for now.”

That faded brown couch pressed against the wall looked like heaven right now. Nothing could have kept me from flopping into its cozy goodness. 

Colby looked downright panicked at the thought of going against Rin again. But Rin dropped the controller like a hot potato and Tyler easily slipped into the spot. Seeing Rin scurry over to my side like a puppy was a nice sight after a day of sticky kids and ungrateful teens.

Tyler and Colby started a new grand prix while Rin shifted at my side. He went from sitting normally to putting his head on my lap until finally putting his feet on my lap!

“Ah, so cozy.”

“What the fuck are you doing?”

I would have been perfectly fine with having his head on my lap–his black hair was always suspiciously smooth–but this was downright disrespectful. I threw off his feet like they were on fire but he plopped them right back on. After a couple more attempts, I noticed the little smirk in the corner of his mouth and realized he was doing this on purpose.

He was trying to get a rise out of me.

And it was working completely.

With a cry powered by years of enduring Rin’s childish teasing, I leaped onto my best friend. The expression of pure shock on his face right before our bodies collided was worth all the pain. Gravity united us with a loud slap and then, the fight was on. 

Tyler had won his second race when the two of us finally stopped wrestling. We were so evenly matched, Rin with his strength and me with my general trickery, that no one kept the upper hand for long. 

Toward the end of our laugh and grunt filled tussle, I grabbed Rin from behind, ripping him off the couch in one swift pull. The result was that I was sitting on one end of the couch with Rin on my lap.

Tired and panting, we both realized this position was incredibly comfortable. Best friends use things far more powerful than words so there was no need to say anything. I scooted further up the couch while Rin got more comfortable on my thighs.

I didn’t remove my hands from around his waist (why would I?) so Rin just dropped his hands on top of mine.

I could hear the desperate sounds of Colby trying to defend his 1st place position in the race, but I didn’t really process them. My mind was way more entertained by Rin’s breathing getting less and less labored the longer he stayed on my lap. 

With my arms around his abdomen, I felt the heat from his body in a different way. I could smell Rin’s hair and see a bead of sweat slide down his temple. Even if we were both too hot to be sitting like this, I really wanted to just lean forward and plop my chin on his shoulder.

Rin was already leaning back into me, acting like nothing was wrong. Everytime he yelled to goad Colby into messing up, the vibrations went through his body to mine. It felt good. 

Sitting like this felt good and comfortable and horribly perfect.

A sharp noise cut through my thoughts. It was warped, distorted, disgustingly high-pitched. All four of us ducked our heads like we’d been attacked, covering our ears against the noise. I know the doorbell only rang once because even from the outside, you could hear how terrible it sounded.

Even if I didn’t have all three of my closest friends in front of me, I’d know none of them were at the door. Some dramatic fight related to Colby’s parents’ separation left the front door broken in the weirdest way. Everyone knew that Mrs Stevens hated that doorbell. No one who ever heard that sound liked that doorbell. Meaning that some strangers were at the door, trying to get in.

Rin leapt off my lap, a bright smile on his face.

“That must be Stephanie.”

Stephanie????

A few seconds later, Rin came back down the stairs with five girls trailing him. Stephanie and others I recognized from cheer or the girls’ soccer team came down the stairs with a wave of giggles. Their chatter and smiles somehow hit the off button on my good mood and a frown appeared instantaneously.

It helped that the last girl was carrying a large stack of pizzas with visible steam seeping out of the sides. Like the gentleman I always am, I beelined for the pizza carrier, relieving her of the load and letting the girls pile onto the couch.

“Hey guys, welcome!” Colby grinned, too much of an extravert to mind the sudden guests. 

It took a few minutes to get Stephanie and the 4 other girls settled. When they were, I found myself on a bean bag chair, directly across from the other where Rin and Stephanie were snuggled. 

I tried to console myself with the new information. Stephanie had the flaw of inviting people without alerting the hosts. A huge no-no.

“Wasn’t Jennie supposed to come too?” Tyler mentioned casually, munching on a piping slice of pepperoni.

Huh? Jennie?

“Her dad threw a mantrum about her grades and kept her back at the last minute,” Stephanie huffed, somehow tucking herself further into Rin’s side. “I mean we were literally outside her house when she told us she couldn’t come.”

“That’s part of why we got here so late,” an Asian girl who I think played soccer tagged on. “That and Mickie’s need to get gluten free pizza.”

“Not everyone is naturally slim, Khue.”

“I don’t think gluten is the key to dropping those non-existent pounds but do you boo,” Khue shot back with a smile.

The room erupted into laughter but in all the noise, I felt even more isolated. I was in the center of the picture of happiness but I just felt confused. When Stephanie dropped a hand on Rin’s thigh mid-laugh, I had enough.

“Sorry to interrupt, but did everyone know you guys were coming except me?”

“Sorry El,” Rin, my supposed best friend, said, wincing a bit. “I was the one who was supposed to tell you. I guess I forgot.”

The group went on to take turns at mario kart and scream over a game of slap jack while I nursed a slice of cheese. The grease wasn’t as comforting as I thought when Rin and Stephanie started making out on the other bean bag.

For the first time in a long time, I wanted to go back to work.