AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“We’ll see.” Justin shyly dipped his head. “Glad I’m not the only one who had no clue what was going on in the game.”
“I might understand more than you two, but I’m just here for the tight pants,” Leah said with a sheepish smile.
“Same!” Emil and I replied in chorus, and everyone laughed.
“Is there a pair of pants you admire most of all?” Emil asked Leah.
“I’ve got several good options.” She cast her gaze toward the field as if imagining the players there. “Like number nineteen.”
“Oooh, Henners, huh?” Justin said. “I hear he doesn’t date much, though.”
“I’m only looking, not trying to date him.”
Why was I holding my breath through this part of the conversation? I finally snapped out of it when I felt Emil staring at me with a strange look on his face.
“Gotta go change,” Emil said. “Wait for me?”
“Sure thing,” I said, and Justin and Leah agreed.
We retreated to the parking lot to wait for him, and I felt a little awkward that Henry’s parents were waiting nearby too. His mom glanced at me a couple of times, but his dad pretended I didn’t exist. I so did not want to be around to watch their exchange with Henry.
If his parents were so uptight about his cancer scare, imagine how they’d respond to him not being straight. It’d been a huge deal that he’d even told me. Or rather, didn’t deny it. Though after our closeness in the supply closet, I was going to guess my suspicions were correct.
Suddenly I felt bummed that he didn’t have his parents’ support like I did. Mom knew from an early age I was gay and just waited for me to finally tell her. It explained the times my stepdad seemed uncomfortable around me, but Mom always smoothed the way. Not that it mattered anymore. He was long gone.
I had only been with a couple of guys in high school, but at least I could cry on my mom’s shoulder when one of them hurt my feelings. Who did Henry have?
Thankfully, Emil was one of the first people out of the building, carrying a garment bag, likely with his uniform inside. It probably felt good to change into jeans and a sweatshirt because the material seemed heavy and hot. “Walk to the dorm with me to drop this off?”
“Sounds good.”
We trudged across campus as dusk fell. What did the students do in the evenings around here? Guess I was about to find out.
Once back in his room, Emil stored his uniform as we got settled on the bed and resumed our conversation from the walk over. We all agreed that the dance instructors were nice but strict, especially the History of Dance professor, who was a bit stuffy and didn’t smile that often. Justin seemed a bit worried about the upcoming fall program and how it would affect our grades. He’d been involved in as many recitals over the years as I had, but he still suffered from stage fright. I just chewed my cuticles raw the night before. Somehow that seemed much worse because I had the evidence to prove it.
I must’ve done something to draw his attention to my fingers because he asked, “So what’s with the Band-Aids?”
Before I could reply, Emil came to my rescue. “He burned himself, and that takes a long time to heal.”
“Sorry, dude,” Justin said, and when Emil’s gaze met mine, he winked. Damn, I didn’t know why he’d done that when I hadn’t ever been honest with him about my hands, but fuck, I appreciated it.
Emil rooted around in a drawer and brought out a box of pot gummies. He gave one each to Justin and Leah, then popped another in his mouth. Apparently, this was standard routine for them.
“Want one?” Emil asked, placing one for me in the palm of his hand.
“I’ve never taken one,” I replied hesitantly.
“Really?” Justin asked, but I didn’t feel like he was judging me.
“No, I’ve only ever had sips of beer with my best friend, Pete.” My face heated because I hoped I didn’t sound inexperienced, which I totally was.
“Ugh, alcohol gives me headaches,” Leah said. “Plus, I can’t stand the taste. I’d take an edible any day of the week.”
“How does it make you feel?” I asked.
“It relaxes me,” Emil said. “Since it’s your first time, just nibble off a corner, and if that sits right, you can eat the rest later.”
So I did, and as we sat there chatting and laughing, I didn’t think the pot was going to do anything until suddenly it hit me, how tranquil I felt. My head was a little spinny but not too bad, so I probably took just the right amount.
