Epilogue
EPILOGUE
ONE YEAR LATER
MAX
The crowd was bigger than last year, but that was probably due to the fact that the discussion had been moved to the evening so the teens could bring the adults in their lives to the event.
Max sat on a folding chair at the front of the room, the same as he had the previous year, although nothing else was similar, which was mostly on account of the young man currently talking to Ess and Xave at the back of the room. Xave was visiting from LA, and Marisol had immediately co-opted the up-and-coming designer to fashion something spectacular for this event. The result? Marisol was resplendent in a fiery outfit that was reminiscent of the makeup Marcello had worn the first time he’d come to Max’s house.
Phoenix Fire, Marcello had called it when he showed the sketches to Max a few days before, and it suited Marisol to perfection. Max had watched the transformation take place in the bedroom of the house he now shared with Marcello, one of his bedrooms rapidly filling with Marisol’s outfits as Marcello reclaimed his passion for drag. He hadn’t performed in public yet, but Max knew that would happen soon enough. Especially if Xave kept designing Marisol outfits like this one.
As Marisol made her way to the front of the room, Max admired the way the sheer fabric floated around her in shimmering and shifting hues of red, orange, and yellow, mimicking flames even as they hugged Marisol’s slender body.
“Hello, love,” Marisol said as she sat next to Max and took his hand.
“Hello, sweetheart,” Max said and leaned over to kiss Marisol just as Diego stepped to the front of the room and asked everyone to take a seat so they could get started.
Like the year before, there was general discussion talking about HIV and AIDS, where research and medication stood, prevention and PrEP, and then they got to the personal stuff. Unlike last year, Max was eager to talk about his life, and he squeezed Marisol’s hand as Diego pointed out the quilt panel that had been hung behind both of them. The birth and death dates were still there, but now there was an infinity symbol after the latter. Marcello had asked if they could add it, and Max had enthusiastically agreed.
“So let’s talk about the positives in your lives,” Diego said, and Marisol immediately had her hand up.
“I found the love of my life,” Marisol proclaimed when Diego called on her. “I wasn’t expecting it. I pretty much thought that it wasn’t going to happen, that my status was going to scare everyone away. But that’s not what happened at all.”
“And how about you, Max?” Diego asked with a twinkle in his eye.
Max took a long look at Marisol, then faced the audience. “Not only have I found the love of my life, I’ve also found a life worth loving. For the first time in a long time, I want that life to last forever.”