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Corbin was the one who noticed me first. His gaze snagged on mine, and a smile stretched across his face. “Hey, CB. Gael made me cry.”
I walked over to them. “Sounds to me like he made you laugh.”
“I cried first,” Corbin answered.
“I didn’t make him cry,” Gael replied. “I just showed him a book, and he started reading it. Blame David Levithan for the tears.”
“What are you reading?”
“Two Boys Kissing, but I think it’s going to slay me.”
Well, then I would just have to cuddle him and make him feel better, wouldn’t I?
Gael patted Corbin’s arm. “You’ll be okay.”
“Who’s the adult here?” I asked.
“You?” Corbin teased, and the three of us shared a laugh.
Gael said, “I should grab the bus home. I have to help Mom with some things today.” He stood, and Corbin did the same.
After we told Gael goodbye, I turned to Corbin with wide eyes. “How in the fuck did you do that?”
“Do what?”
“With Gael. He doesn’t let people in quickly. He’s a great kid but doesn’t make friends easily. He’s had a rough go of it. I’ve never heard him laugh the way he did just now.” Was there anything Corbin couldn’t do? All it took was one conversation with him, one look at his sparkling eyes, and he had people smitten.
“No shit?”
“No shit.”
“He’s great. We just started talking and clicked. I could tell he was lonely, so I wanted to fix it, but then I just enjoyed talking to the kid. Something about him reminds me of myself when I was his age.”
“Jesus. Thank you.” I grabbed Corbin and pulled him into a hug. He immediately buried his face in my neck, returning my embrace, maybe even tighter than I held him.
“What are you thanking me for?”
“I don’t know…befriending him. I want that for Gael so much, and it just…” Just amazed me that somehow Corbin zeroed in on the one kid I felt a connection with too. How we had these moments and small things that tied us together.
“Well, snuggles are a nice thank-you. I guess my awesomeness comes naturally, and Gael must have seen that.”
Little did he know he was quickly putting a spell on me too.
“So, what are we going to do today?” Corbin asked when he pulled away.
“Something fun.” When was the last time I’d just went out and done something fun? But being around Corbin made it impossible not to want to do exactly that.
“I have the perfect idea!” Corbin took my hand, grabbed the book in the other, then led me out of the building.
We didn’t let go of each other until we got to the car.
* * *
We ended up going to an arcade, which had been a surprise, but one I was on board with. They had a variety of games, bumper cars, race cars, miniature golf, and also served meals and drinks.
“You really are a big kid, aren’t you?” I said when Corbin grabbed my hand and practically dragged me toward the doors.
“No one wants to come here with me. Marcus never knew how to have fun before Kai, and hitting up an arcade definitely wasn’t on his list.”
“Oh, I see, so you bring me because your friends don’t want to go? Now my feelings are hurt.”
“No, they’re not. I know you better than that, but also, that’s not true. I’ve heard CBs are awesome people to go play games with.” I couldn’t help rolling my eyes, which made Corbin grin. “What? It’s a known fact.”
“A minute ago you randomly ‘heard’ this, and now it’s a known fact?”
“You added the randomly. Not me.”
We headed inside and found a table first, so we had a home base to come back to. It was loud because of all the game noises, but luckily, it wasn’t as busy as it could be. Maybe people were saving money for the upcoming holidays.
A waitress came by, and we asked for water and ordered a plate of wings to share. She was hardly a step away from the table before Corbin said, “Let’s go,” then dragged me out of our booth.
Chuckling, I said, “I don’t think the games are going anywhere.”
“You said today is my day, and I intend to have all the fun.”
“Um…I don’t recall saying that.”
“You don’t? Strange because I do.”
We loaded game cards with money and then were on our way. We shot basketball and played Skee-Ball. I kicked Corbin’s ass in a race-car game, but then he took me out in a shooting game. While I enjoyed games, I couldn’t deny there was an extra buzz at the base of my spine today. Part of it came from how Corbin made me laugh, but I also just enjoyed seeing him have fun. He was so open, so pure in this way I couldn’t really explain. Like Corbin was all feeling, led by his heart and emotions. Everything was big with him, so when he was laughing and having a good time, it was contagious. I felt everything he did, his joy inspiring my own. If this was what he showed, I wondered how much heart he kept hidden. How big was all that hurt I knew he felt.
