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There were too many moving parts to our relationship.
“What did Barry and Robert say about what happened?” Daniel asked.
“Barry said not to do it again, and Robert said it’s good to live a little, or something, I don’t really know. But it wasn’t anything serious like this.”
Daniel sighed. “They’ve seen enough to know better.”
“Ishould know better.”
“Hey, let’s be fair. You got a blow job or two, maybe a hand job, and that’s probably all that happened. You weren’t doing anything else when we found you, and you didn’t say anything last night that implied otherwise. But I think at the very least you should talk to Jeremy and find out as much as you can. You can’t be too safe, Peter.”
My heart beat like a drum.
“I don’t mean to scare you,” he said. “I want to make sure you’re taking care of yourself. And, if it comes down to it, if you need me to go to the clinic with you, I can do that. I don’t mind. I do it for a lot of my friends.”
“Thank you. I guess I do want Jeremy’s number? I need a pen. Hold on.”
I dropped the phone to the ground with a clatter, my hands shaking as I searched through the kitchen junk drawer. I finally found one and grabbed a napkin to write on.
“Okay, I’m ready.”
Daniel repeated Jeremy’s number twice as I painstakingly wrote it down.
“What do I do? Call him up and say, ‘Hey, so, what happened?’”
“Sure.”
My stomach seized up. “I feel like I might puke.”
Daniel’s voice was gentle. “Do you need moral support for the phone call? I could come over. Or you can come to my place and call from here. Whatever you want.” He sighed. “I can’t believe Robert didn’t suggest this. Or Barry. Especially Barry.”
“I didn’t tell them about not remembering everything,” I said.
Daniel was quiet and my fingers shook as I tore at the edges of the napkin I’d written Jeremy’s number on. “Peter, where do you live? I’ll come over.”
“Really?” I heard the sheer panic in my voice. “You’d really do that?”
“You’re a good kid, and I don’t mind at all.”
A goodkid.
I needed to stop fooling myself about him. Especially now that he’d seen me at my worst.
Waiting on my front stoop for Daniel to show, I fretted and wiped away hot, angry tears. When I saw Betty Blue come up over the hill, I pushed back my emotions and got myself together. I didn’t want Daniel to see me like that.
My heart galloped nervously when Daniel pulled into the driveway and climbed from the car wearing khaki shorts and a dark green T-shirt. His dark blond hair shone in the sunshine and his amber-brown eyes crinkled with a reassuring smile as he walked toward me.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hi,” I answered, giving him a small wave.
When he reached me, he pulled me into an unexpected hug. I tensed at first, my glasses jamming into the side of my face, but then I relaxed. I hadn’t prepared myself for the possibility of being held in his arms. He was taller than me by several inches, strong, and he smelled comforting, like warm bread. His embrace was reassuring. But just as I was melting into it, he patted my back and broke away.
“You look awful. Did you get any sleep?”
“Not really.”
He rubbed my shoulder and nodded toward the house. “So?”
