Page 79 of Josh’s Play

“Oh fuck, Cam. I think I stereotyped ‘Upstate New York farmer’. Maybe made assumptions about why you were in the closet. I’m so sorry.”

“Did you forget the part about the NHL?”

“No, I didn't, I just thought … I thought it was both things. Your parents are really great, Cam, and I may have been too flabbergasted by that fact to make a good first impression.”

“You seemed a little nervous. I just thought it was the whole ‘meeting the parents’ thing. I mean, I’m still recovering from the professor and the dean.”

“Cam, your parents are great and all, but shouldn’t I sleep in the guest room?”

“No, you most certainly should not! We hardly get to spend any time together. The one place, well, besides your house now, I guess, that I get to be out, and you expect me to not spend every moment, waking and sleeping, with you?” Cam came off the bed, tipping forward until he was on his hands and knees, crawling toward me.

“I used to do my homework sprawled out on this carpet.” His arms were straddling one of my legs, and his face was close to mine.

I moved one hand a little, rubbing it in the fibers of the rug. “It’s comfy.”

“And I’d dream about someone up here with me. Just hanging out, really. Lying next to me and helping each other with homework or playing video games. Taking breaks to make out and roll around on this very carpet.”

He embraced me then and kissed me soundly, guiding us until we were prone, his dense weight covering me like one of those weighted blankets, warming me, protecting me. He rolled us eventually, never taking his lips from mine, keeping our bodies as connected as possible, our legs intertwined. When our hips started to get in on the action, he pulled his head back and rested it on the carpet. I hovered above him, one hand in his hair, one on his shoulder. His eyes twinkled. “Of course, I also imagined us playing one-on-one at the rink, but I guess I’ll settle for a sweet little circle skate since you’ve never even held a stick. We can listen to my eighties-rock playlist.”

I rolled off him and lay down on my back as well. “No. Nope. Absolutely not with that ridiculous arena rock. This relationship is over.” We smiled at each other as we laughed before we both leaned in for another quick kiss. I would have happily gone back to making out and rolling around on Campbell’s floor, but he pulled back.

“You really thought they were homophobes?”

“I’m so sorry, Cam, but I really did. I’ll be less of an ass at dinner, now that I’m not so confused.”

“You just keep being you. Nervous or confused or whatever, I know my parents are going to love you because …”

We’d said it once, but we also hadn’t said it again, and admittedly, we’d been joking and laughing that first time.

I stopped him with a kiss. “Thank you, my prince.” The light in his eyes said it all. “Are you really taking me for an ATV ride to meet a cow?”

Sure enough, a few minutes later I was straddling Cam as he drove us around the farm, him pointing and screaming things in my ear as we went.

We washed up for dinner, and I insisted that Cam and I help since the family had been cooking since we left. There wasn’t much left to do, but it gave me the opportunity to interact with Cam’s family. I was much more relaxed and felt at home with the loud, happy family that reminded me of my own, minus a few siblings and one boisterous niece. I told them more about the Marchetti-Gordons, and they shared with me about running the farm and the tourist business. They asked about my future plans, and I found myself talking about podcasts and the article I had written about out sports figures, and I may have been realizing in real time that a career in sports communications was my future.

“My brother’s got scouts coming to see him, too, and I’ve been writing a little about that.”

“You have?” Cam asked. “I didn’t know that. That’s awesome.”

“Yeah. It’s just for me right now, not for a class or anything. But I could see following Hunter’s journey the same way our podcast followed yours.”

“You know, we might have to record a final episode, Josh. If we’re really going to post them.”

“Yeah, maybe we can brainstorm some ideas after finals. Then when you have that big announcement thingy, maybe we can release the pod.”

“Josh, if you’re going to be a sports journalist or whatever, you can’t call it an announcement thingy.”

The family laughed good naturedly at my faux pas.

Cam and I cleaned up after dinner, and through the kitchen window we watched as the younger boys kicked a soccer ball, and Daniel and Camille sat at an outdoor table that rivaled the size of the one behind me in the kitchen. “When we have guests and the weather’s nice, we serve dinner out there instead of in here.”

“It seems like this would be a really special and unique vacation.”

Cam pinched my waist. “Yeah, until my dad starts groping you!”

It was weird sleeping in Cam’s childhood bed. I climbed in and tried to keep to my side, but Cam’s huge arm snaked under my waist and pulled me toward him until I was lying on his chest.

My phone dinged on the nightstand, and I rolled over to pick it up, showing Cam the photo of my niece on Hunter’s lap, with a broadly smiling Jamie behind them. My sister had sent the photo to the family chat and captioned it: Vee will have to wake Uncle Hunter up in the morning since Uncle Joshy’s God knows where.