Page 13 of Love Lessons

Hey! he signed to the newcomer.

Dustin turned to find an individual of indeterminate gender wearing a filmy wrap skirt that fluttered around tight jeans. Above that was a shirt with creative tears and interspersed splashes of ribbon that could only have been made by a fashion designer.

Landon made introductions. This is Dustin. Dustin, this is Ash. Ash uses they/them pronouns. Ash's namesign was the letter A tapped on the inside of the opposite wrist, a location which usually indicated a medical professional.

Are you a doctor? Dustin asked. He definitely would have guessed artist.

No, a nurse. I work in a long-term care facility and get to chat with all the Deaf patients. How about you?

I’m a programmer. I sit in my room all day and chat with my computer. Dustin turned to Landon, who was laughing again. Why did he care so much about making him laugh? What do you do?

I’m a teacher. I spend all day trying to get twelve-year-olds to listen to me. I love them, but I have to write report cards this week. That part’s wretched. He made the sign for figuratively vomiting.

Landon’s eyes grew stormy for a moment. And I might not have a job next year, but that’s a different issue.

Fuck that was… really bad. And to know that in December and still have half a year to teach must be agonizing.

Landon’s face held both anger and regret, but he quickly transformed it into a smile. Nothing to do about it, though. Let’s talk about something else.

Dustin didn’t feel good letting it go, but it also wasn’t his place to jump in. For a moment, Landon had looked like he needed someone to talk to, like he was holding a lot behind his cheerful demeanor. Hopefully he had other people in his life for that.

Ash patted Landon on the shoulder in a display of comfort and then squeezed around the table to sit on the other side so that they could all see each other.

Trying to jump start the conversation in compliance with Landon’s wishes, he turned to Ash. Did you make your shirt? He would definitely have never worn anything like that himself, but on Ash it really worked.

Yep. I like to think of my body as a piece of art. They made a flourishing gesture. And it keeps me sane, Ash added with a wink.

Dustin nodded. Ash was kind of cute with their irrepressible confidence and enthusiasm. If he weren’t so dazzled by Landon sitting next to him, he might even be interested. Not that he was trying to date anyone or anything. What was with him today?

I like it, he said, simply. It’s not necessarily my style, but I’m still impressed.

Ash beamed. If you stick around, I might make you something. More subtle, of course. Once I know you better so I can figure out what you’d like.

They made me a shirt for my birthday that was amazing, Landon added. Which only made Dustin want to think about Landon in some revealing shirt with bits of skin peeking through.

He forced himself to stay focused on the conversation, even if he was still far too aware of Landon sitting next to him. Landon whose knee sometimes drifted over until it was resting against his thigh and stayed there. Dustin was aware of every square inch of that heat.

He’d never had anyone hit on him so directly. It was… kind of nice. His APD made him a bit awkward, more awkward than he thought of himself on the inside, but it still meant that he hadn’t done a lot of dating.

He let those thoughts settle in the back of his head while they talked. The conversation was surprisingly normal. They talked about their work, though Landon stuck to funny stories instead of the impending loss of his job. They compared stories of where they’d learned ASL. Landon had gone to a Deaf school up through middle school then chosen to be mainstreamed for high school, while Ash had done the opposite.

Dustin shared that he’d learned ASL from an aide in second grade when his APD was finally diagnosed, and then gone to a Deaf school for a few years, before returning to a hearing middle school in classes with an interpreter. He’d been practically failing out of school up until he learned ASL, and he still felt like that enterprising aide had saved his life.

A few times during the conversation, someone new came into the room and Landon dispensed greetings and hugs. He popped into other conversations and often had people waving in his peripheral vision or tapping his shoulder to pull him in to other discussions. It seemed like he was the social hub of the group, not just the organizer.

Whenever he got up, Dustin tried not to watch him, even though it was where his eyes wanted to go. Was he standing as close to that woman as he had to Dustin? Did he just wink at that man? Did everyone get those disarmingly exuberant smiles?

Around the fourth time that Landon got up--when Dustin had barely taken the first bite of his burger--Dustin started to realize that Landon was way out of his league. He shone like a star, drawing everyone into his orbit and spreading light to the room. And just like the sun, he was completely untouchable.

Dustin tried not to feel disappointed when he eventually had to acknowledge that Landon probably had been flirting with him. But only because he flirted with everyone. He was the gallant gentleman. The charming boy next door. The life of the party.

Dustin just got to reflect a bit of his light for a moment, like the lonely moon.

Dustin turned his attention fully to Ash, reminding himself that he hadn’t known Landon long enough to feel regret. He was here to make friends, and Ash was pretty cool. Landon could be a good friend, too. Or at least someone who he could be friendly with if he came back to the munches.

Ash had apparently noticed his attention wandering, though. Landon’s cute, isn’t he?

He certainly seems to be friendly with everyone, Dustin hedged.