They had been to the same place many times since then, sat at the same table, ordered the same food. And Oscar would never grow tired of it. He no longer wondered now whether Aaron would stand him up; this was not a risk when they always came together. They always left together, too.
Aaron produced a thin stack of bills from his wallet and put them in the leather folder the waitress had brought. Oscar didn’t argue. It was nice to be taken care of, nice to let him do it.
His tears had dried up, and his skin had cleared after all the crying from sheer relief, the terror leaving his body. Dr. Andrews had let them sit in his office a little longer to process the good news.
“My feelings shouldn’t be bigger than yours,” Oscar had said, squeezing a word in between each staccato breath.
“They’re bound to be, with a heart that big,” Aaron had replied. And then he’d kissed him, and Oscar’s breathing had evened.
Since that moment, Oscar had spent many a minute glancing at his phone, typing out little secrets, lingering outside the coffee shop and inside, too, suggesting a walk on the fine sunlit morning instead of the bus.
With their hands joined, Oscar and Aaron made their way up to their apartment. Oscar almost regretted his little plan when Aaron’s hand began to slide over his backside the moment his key turned in the lock.
But there would be time for it, all the years to come. For now, Oscar basked in the joy that welcomed them home. Tobe leapt at Aaron, pulling him into their shoulder, kissing him on the cheek over and over again while he tried to gather himself. Marta and Anna got in line for a hug, Riley holding on to Luigi like a baby in their arms. And Joe came to Oscar, wrapping an arm around him.
“I knew it would be alright,” he said.
“Hey.” Lina was waiting beside him, ready to wrap Oscar into one of her hugs. “I’m so grateful and so relieved.”
“Yeah, he grows on you, doesn’t he?” Oscar held his sister by the shoulder, glancing Aaron’s way, watching him shine, eyes glimmering, mouth split into a grin, as his friends skipped around, holding his hands, Joe lifting him into a bear hug.
“Sure grew onyou,” Lina murmured. When Oscar looked, her eyes were on the ring on Aaron’s hand, his black nails scratching his head as he laughed, soft and smooth and everything Oscar had ever dreamt of. “Looks familiar.”
“I didn’t ask if you wanted it,” Oscar said.
“We both know it should be yours,” Lina replied,bumping his arm.
“He was both our Papa,” Oscar said.
“Congratulations, Spike,” Lina said, tilting her head to rest it on his shoulder.
“Thanks, Minnie,” he replied, kissing her on the temple.
Grandma had her arms around Aaron now. Lina had picked her up on the way over, not even hesitating when Oscar asked whether she might want to drive to their apartment to celebrate Aaron’s good news. Tobe and Marta hadn’t even been a question, Riley a happy accident who had been hanging out at their office, playing with the ferret the organization had adopted.
Aaron was nodding into Grandma’s shoulder, eyes filled with tears. Oscar wished Gemma could be here for him, too, that Aaron could let his mother hold him and tell him that she loved him, that Robbie was a fool.
“Well, we brought drinks!” Tobe said, heading over to the fridge like they lived there.
“And snacks,” Anna added, picking a bag up off the floor.
Moments later, their friends were spread out on the couch, Grandma sitting on the armchair with Lina and Riley on either side of her, and Oscar and Aaron were standing in front of them, Oscar’s arms around Aaron’s waist while Aaron told them the final verdict and how happy he was and how great it felt to finally know.
“And Oscar passed every exam,” he said at last, twisting his neck to look at him, eyes narrowed. “Did you think I wasn’t waiting for your results, too?”
“They hardly matter,” Oscar replied, shrugging.
But they did, even if they mattered a little less, and Aaron shifted closer in his grip, pressing his shoulder into Oscar’s chin, fitting with him like a freshly cut puzzle piece.
“I’ve also made a decision,” Aaron said.
Oscar squeezed a drop of courage into him, thumb rubbing the skin where his shirt had hiked up over the hip.They’d talked about it at the coffee shop, an announcement Aaron had waited to make until he got his results.
“Finally!” Tobe said. “Yes, my boy!”
“That’s lovely, Aaron. Nursing is such a wonderful career,” Grandma said. “Good for you, sweetheart.”
“I decided it was time I started. I’ve looked into cheaper options and colleges, and it will take me a little longer than normal, but I’ve waited this long. I can wait a little longer.” Aaron drew circles with his thumb on the back of Oscar’s hand. “I’ve learned that it’s okay to share the load with someone else. We don’t have to be everything all at once, and Oscar and I are happy in this little rent-controlled apartment we can both afford.”
