Page 72 of Josh’s Play

He’d texted “Let me see,'' and I panned my stomach and my cock for him before bringing the phone back to my face. I opened my mouth but snapped it shut quickly, realizing I was about to mouth I love you to the man currently hiding in a tiny bathroom covered in cum.

I settled for texting, “I miss you,” then, “I’m going to sleep for real this time.”

We ended the night, or early morning, with his, “I miss you too,” but Josh kept up the commentary and sent photos of his day in a Brooklyn park, working with his family, members of his brother AJ’s fire department crew, and kids, staff, and volunteers from a local LGBTQIA youth center. He was still updating me on his day as he and his family headed back to Jamie’s house for pizza and game night. Josh went silent for a while, and I pictured him sharing a meal and competing with his family members, but when he returned to his phone, it was with a “holy shit,” followed by a text letting me know that Jamie, who had been married to a woman and was sadly a widower, had come out as pansexual at the age of forty-three.

Josh was weirded out by the fact that his roommate, who’d stayed with Jamie during his internship a few months earlier, seemed to have already known.

Finn: That kinda makes sense. If he was figuring that shit out when Devon was staying with him, who better to talk to than a gay guy?

Shelley: That’s exactly what AJ said. Stop being so sensible and mature. I want to be pissy that I wasn’t in on the secret.

Shelley: Ooh, I guess this is the secret that Dev’s been hiding. The way he’s been acting is a little dramatic for something that doesn’t have anything to do with him, but whatever. It’s all out now. No more secrets!

I tugged my hair in frustration, and it made me think of my mother’s comment that I always did that when I was stressed.

Finn: You should tell your family.

Shelley: What?

Finn: We both should.

Shelley: Finn, don’t be rash. we’ll talk about this when I get home, ok?

Finn: Ok.

The next afternoon, Josh sent a text describing a little gazebo on campus that I’d passed a few times because it was tucked behind the trees that lined my street. What I didn’t realize at the time was that those same trees held a path directly to Josh’s backyard. It was a surprisingly mild day for Upstate New York in spring as I waited on the bench in the gazebo, staring out at the hill that led to one of the clusters of dormitory buildings and thinking about my future, when Josh appeared on the steps.

“Hello, my prince. You look deep in thought.”

“Why do you call me that?”

“That’s what you were thinking about?”

I laughed at him, enjoying our little banter.

“Not at all. I was thinking very big thoughts, but first I want to know where the ‘prince’ thing came from.”

“Would you believe me if I told you I picture you wearing a raspberry beret?”

“And partying like it’s 1999?”

“Exactly.”

“No.”

“Yeah, I didn’t think so. It’s just, that’s how I saw you. How I still see you, really. You’re like this elevated person. You’re so talented, but that’s just part of it. You’re also good and kind, and you put your family first, like a responsible eldest son. You deserve to have your dreams come true for all of those reasons, and when I was falling for you, I needed to remind myself of that because, you know, of the whole distraction thing, so I shorthanded it by calling you my prince.”

He was looking at his shoes as he said most of that, and I sat in stunned silence for a few beats before responding, “You were falling for me?”

He looked up at me then, a quick look of panic fading into a smile. “I mean, wasn’t that part clear? I stopped hooking up with guys the minute I met you. I turned a simple project into a reason to attend every one of your home games.”

“Most of my games.”

“Most of your games. I mean, I learned what offsides means, for God's sake.”

“Clearly, it’s true love,” I said, and I was laughing as I said it, but Josh’s eyes went wide before getting very, very intense. I slowly stood, never taking my eyes off him.

“My prince,” he said before pouncing on me with a searing kiss. I held him up, like we’d done that night in his dorm room, and he wrapped his arms and legs around me. I sat us down, and eventually, Josh slowed the kiss, pulled back, and got comfortable on my lap.