“Yes. Yes, I do,” he said, nervously dragging a shoe across the gravel.
“But . . . but, what about Jennifer?” I asked. “Uh. . . and Hastings if he actually likes me?”
“We might have a problem, Coop.”
And once again, I turned toward the school, noticing how clearly I could see the school grounds even though I couldn’t see into the bleachers when I chased after Mikey. The football field nearby was empty since the season was long over with. The wide concrete sidewalks around the school were crowded with kids hanging out enjoying the warmer spring weather while sitting on the grass with their lunch. I noticed a few guys talking near their cars in the student’s lot, most likely comparing engines or horsepower, or things I didn’t care about. Two monitors kept careful eyes on everyone. Suddenly I realized that all the people were going about their business and hadn’t noticed us. They hadn’t heard Mikey say what I’ve always wanted him to say.
I turned back to Mikey. “You’re not teasing me, are you?” He shook his head. “For real, real?” I asked.
“If you want to give me a chance.”
All I could manage was a nod. I nodded over and over and over again. It was difficult to see Mikey through welling eyes, but he was there. Rightthere. He said he loved me like I loved him. I wasn’t daydreaming this moment.
“I’d like that.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX: Mike
Icaught Cooper staring at me from the rearview mirror. Him and Hastings were in the back of Jennifer’s car while I drove us to the local tux shop for final fittings after school. The afternoon had gone by painstakingly slow after my admission to Cooper under the bleachers. We had one class together after lunch where we just stared across the room at each other while we sat with our lab partners in biology.
* * *
“What are we going to do?” Cooper had asked after I told him how I felt about him. “I mean, we have to go to class, we’re gonna see them.”
“Come here,” I’d said, pulling him close, and keeping an eye on the area around the bleachers. I leaned into his neck and inhaled a familiar scent that I’d never forgotten even after all those years. He smelled fresh with a mild hint of a musk cologne he wore: sweet yet masculine.
“I don’t want to hurt anyone,” Cooper said, relaxing into me. “Plus, I’m afraid you’re not certain about this, Mikey. What . . . what . . . what if you change your mind?” he stuttered.
“Does this help?” I gently touched his chin and lifted his head to face me. “I want to be with you, Coop, and I will not change my mind. I promise.”
I slowly closed the distance, causing his eyes to widen before shutting after I pressed my lips gently onto his. I tenderly flicked my tongue across his lips, encouraging him to open for me. His chest heaved and I felt a tremor travel through him before he relaxed into me; allowing me to do what I had anticipatedhe would, to let me lead the way.
My tongue moved past his soft lips and his velvety tongue met mine, testing the feeling. The kiss wasn’t my first but I assumed might be his because he’d never shared whether Hastings and him had kissed. My first kiss with the boy I have loved forever was different from the ones that came before him. Coop felt masculine and more solid than Jennifer had at any age, and she was always fit.
For the first time in both my lives, I felt like I was finally home.
I pushed harder, more aggressively when he opened his mouth wider and let me explore the incredible emotions blazing through my brain, invading my heart, and waking up a sexual desire I’d never experienced before.
Soft moaning escaped from him while I devoured his silky mouth by darting and swirling my tongue against his. I inhaled everything about him. A kiss would never get me close enough to him no matter how hard I pressed or how deep I probed. I wanted, no, I needed all of him.
Cooper moved his hands from his sides where they had been dangling while we kissed and placed them on the sides of my face before standing taller on his toes and meeting me forcefully, causing our teeth to clash.
A low and guttural noise emanated from me as my cock swelled uncontrollably. I pulled away and stared into his eyes. “Fuck,” I swore. “I never imagined it’d be like this after all these years, Coop.”
He smiled sheepishly. “I believe you.”
* * *
“Oh my God,” Jennifer shrieked. “Turn that up. It’s Taylor Swift’s new song.”
“We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” blared through her sound system in her far-too-expensive-for-a-teenager’s BMW.
“She’s country though,” Hastings complained from the back seat, a sour look on his face when he made gagging motions behind Jennifer. “I give her fifteen minutes and she’s over,” he added.
“I don’t care,” Jen stated. “This is my anthem if Michael ever screws around on me.”
“She’ll never beBritneybig,” Hastings threw back at her. “Or evenLadyGagabig.”
Hastings just convinced me that he was truly gay. I didn’t have the heart or the nerve to tell them that Taylor Swift was the biggest music star on the planet in 2023.
