Chapter 34
EASTON
I’ve reached a concerning level of panic that I’ve never experienced before—eerily calm.
My brain logically knows that the danger is over; Aaron is in custody and Asher is receiving some much-needed medical care in the hospital.
The guillotine that has been hanging over my head since I was sixteen years old has suddenly been dismantled.
There’s no hope of taking time to process this properly because the show—my show—starts in just a couple of hours.
“Happy birthday,” Chase says, appearing from the hallway to lean in the doorframe. His gorgeous eyes lock with mine in the full-length mirror that I’m fretting over my outfit in. “How’d that line go? The one Parker left in a voice note this morning. Isn’t it fun turning twenty-one?”
I smile. Parker sure can make me laugh. Most people would go with the typical happy birthday song, but not him. “It’s supposed to be fun turning twenty-one. Statement, not question. But you’ve got the right general idea.”
Chase shrugs, grin creeping up at his full lips. “So is it fun then?”
“I’ll report back when I know for sure.”
He slinks over like a panther, sliding his hands around my hips. I melt. “You look fucking incredible,” he murmurs, attaching his lips to my neck.
I had something cheeky to say, but it now escapes me. As long as he keeps sucking on my pulse like that, maybe it will be fun turning twenty-one. “That feels so good.”
He hums against my flesh, and I feel the vibration all over.
We’re going to be late. Honestly, we’re lucky no one has come looking for us yet.
But he slips his hand to caress my rapidly hardening cock over the fabric of my pants, and I don’t care about any of that.
Chase continues the kiss and nip torture at any exposed skin he can find.
A loud bang startles me, but has him chuckling against me. “Come on, slowpokes. We gotta get a move on,” my brother calls.
“Damn,” Chase groans. “Almost got away with it.”
I laugh because what else am I going to do? “Better luck next time.”
He smiles into one last kiss before heading Brady off so I have a minute to calm myself back down.
After one last examination, I decide there’s nothing I can pick apart so I might as well give up trying.
Styled by Blakely Ellison hasn’t led me wrong yet and it’s not like there’s anything I can do about the startled deer look in my eyes.
After rolling my plastic bracelet a little higher so I can hide it under the cuff of my shirt and grabbing my phone, there’s nothing left but to find the three musketeers. “You look hot,” Blakely announces loudly when she spots me coming down the stairs.
“Right?” Chase doesn’t take his eyes off me for a second. Heat rushes up my face.
I mumble a half-assed thanks before reminding them that we should be heading out already.
“The car just got here. After you, Mister Featured Artist.” Blake’s tone may be teasing, but pride is threatening to burst from her seams. Rare is a day that even one person looks at me like that, much less three of them so far with many more to come later.
It was a bit naive to not think Margeaux would find this occasion worthy of making sure her entire bunch made it on a plane to be here for this.
But of course, none of them are missing it.
In fact, they insist on celebrating by taking me out for a legal drink and appetizers before the show.
When I thought about all those birthday presents hiding in a closet for years, I knew that I had to give them the big family day they’ve been waiting for.
It’s been so long since I cared about this day passing, I almost forgot why it mattered.
Mom and Dad never made a fuss about it, minus the annual cinnamon rolls.
There were never parties with friends or extended family.
Once Brady was old enough to drive, we would usually take off for a day at the beach for his birthday since it was in the summer.
We would try and find an excuse to leave for mine.
One year, we couldn’t really come up with anything so he treated me to an ice cream cone while I got lost in a sketchbook for however long I wanted.
We must have sat in his truck for hours, just to have some peace and quiet.
I thought that was about as good as birthdays were going to get. Fifteen-year-old me would not have known what to do with me now with a hired car on the way to my own show.
Happy birthday, indeed.
Blake passes out glasses of champagne in the back seat.
When they’re all handed out, she holds hers up with a smile.
“A toast. To our darling birthday boy. Not only is today the very beginning of what I know will be an amazing career, but it marks something far more important. You’re now officially old enough to join us in our long history of poor decision making at sleazy bars. ”
We laugh and clink our glasses while I try not to tear up.
They still want me, even after everything I put them through.
No one is upset or disappointed in me. “I couldn’t have done any of it without you guys,” I admit.
“I know it’s been a rollercoaster getting here, and you have endured more of it than you should have, but I’m grateful nonetheless.
” The words are not enough, can never be enough to properly encapsulate what each of the three of them mean to me.
My brother who gifted me a golden ray of hope to keep me warm on the dark days.
My friend, who has shown me the courage to try new things and be exactly who I want to be.
Chase, my love, my purpose. I wouldn’t be here now if he didn’t remind me that there was life after tragedy.
While my meager declaration didn’t come close to telling them the depths of my love and appreciation, from the way they’re each looking at me now, they still know.
“You know what was more than I should have endured?” Brady asks.
“That pack of rapid dogs showing up to my door looking for your ass when you and Landon tried to throw the universe out of whack.”
“By rabid dogs, he means basketball players,” Chase adds for the sake of my clarity.
“Which is the same thing. I thought they were going to swing on me when they found Blake in bed with you.”
She’s quick to her own defense. “It was a very bad day. Chase could have kicked me out of bed and made me go home. I forgot that those weirdos get up at the ass crack of dawn. Man, their faces were priceless though.”
“Did you tell them it wasn’t like that?” I ask.
Blakely smirks. “Absolutely not. Landon did not know what to do with himself when he found out Chase was a thousand percent gay, way after that day. It was hilarious. But that is how I found myself being yanked out of another man’s bed and carried out the door in nothing but a shirt and underwear.”
Chase laughs. “That’s a good one. You know what was more than I could endure?
Brady’s surfer-hair phase.” My brother squawks in protest, but Chase pushes on to explain in graphic detail how much Brady fussed over his hair.
That’s the game we play all the way to the restaurant.
Eventually, I join in with my own additions.
All the things we couldn’t endure, but what we just went through doesn’t come up one time.
Maybe I was wrong to assume it was too much.
~~~
I realize this is not the point of the evening, but I can’t help but wonder where all these framed sketches came from.
They’re mine, obviously, but who submitted them?
Honestly, I was as checked out of this process as I could have been.
This is a bit much, though. I try to catch Brady’s eye, or Blakely, or fucking any of them.
As if they sense my desperation, it’s a suddenly impossible task.
What assholes. Sketch-stealing assholes.
People are milling about, examining my deepest darkest secrets of my soul while I am…
not sure what to do with my hands. An older gentleman approaches me, and like an incessant fly, I swat away my instinct to flee.
It’s fine. This is what people do at these events.
Of course I’ll have to talk to potential buyers.
The smile on my face is open and friendly and entirely a creation of necessity. “Hi. Are you enjoying the show?”
The man looks around, appraising my dreams laid out before him. “The artist has a very fresh perspective, I’ll say that.”
Because I’m an idiot, the first thought I have is what comes out of my mouth. “Thanks, I think.”
His eyes are quick to snap towards me. Internally, I shrivel and die of humiliation. “This is all your work?”
Don’t back down now. You got yourself into this mess. “Yes. Well, unless you don’t like them then it’s not me.”
He laughs like I’ve made a clever joke, and I join in to keep that illusion going. The man sticks his hand out to me. “Damien Waters.”
“Easton Callaghan,” I return, shaking his hand.
“Well, Easton, I’d love to hear a little about your inspiration, especially for the featured pieces.”
And that’s how I launch into a summarized story of my life.
Or at least the things that ended up on the highlight reel.
The impact of my brother and I living in terror that someone would discover the sins of my depression and queerness.
How that led me right into the hands of someone seeking to take advantage of me.
The way these things led me to attempting to take my life and how hard climbing back up has been.
When I’m done, hesitantly I look into Damien’s face, expecting to find pity or maybe disgust. Instead, there’s a terrifying level of understanding that sends my heart galloping into outer space.
He clears his throat. “Um. Wow. That’s an incredible story of overcoming hardships if I’ve ever heard one…
My sister committed suicide when she was fifteen.
I wonder every day who she would have become if she could have hung on long enough to get help. ”
My stomach sinks as the familiar pain burns in my throat. “I’m so very sorry, Damien. I really am.”
He nods, lingering in the ghosts of should-have-beens, even after all this time. “We didn’t know much about mental health either back then. It was a long time ago,” he says, like that somehow excuses the grief he’s endured for years.
It doesn’t. “What was her name?”
That visibly lightens some of his pain, as if it’s been too long since he’s spoken it aloud. “Rose.”
“It’s a beautiful name. I know it’s not any consolation, but if I had been successful, I would have wanted someone to tell my brother that as hard as it is to believe, I held on as long as I could, and he helped me get that far.
Not in any way would there have been something he should have done differently. ”
Damien’s warm brown eyes grow misty. “You’re a very insightful young man.
Thank you—both for asking about her and the kind words.
Suicide touches far more people than it should.
” I nod in solemn agreement. I almost didn’t get this far, and more than ever, I’m so glad I failed.
“I’ll let you get back to mingling, Easton.
This is a big night for you, and you should enjoy it.
I’m going to leave you my business card.
I’d love to chat with you further about some commission pieces. ”
Stammering to catch up, I take the card and pocket it. “Oh. Yeah, of course. It was lovely to meet you. Thank you for coming tonight.” Is that a normal thing to say? Hell if I know. But Damien is already slipping into the crowd.
My brain worm goes into hyperdrive thinking of Rose, ways I could honor her memory and intertwine her story with the message I’m trying to project.
I barely notice being approached again, this time by a woman, arm in arm with whom I can only assume is her wife given their closeness.
“There you are!” she exclaims like we’re long-lost friends.
I like her instantly and inexplicably. “I thought I had better chances of finding you if I stopped moving around the room.”
Both women laugh. A small victory but one I tuck away for safekeeping. “Oh, you’re just as darling as Margeaux led us to believe.”
Her having delightful friends comes as no surprise. “I’m happy to hear she didn’t oversell my charm. Are you ladies enjoying the show?”
They share a conspiratorial look. I have no idea what that could mean.
“We are! Your featured pieces are powerful and the sketches are such a wonderful look into your wide array of capabilities.” Surely, given the scalding heat in my ears, I’m blushing terribly.
“How rude of us to not introduce ourselves. You have to forgive us, dear. Margeaux is an old friend of ours and she’s spoken so highly of you that we felt as if we’ve known you for ages. I’m Blaire and this is my partner Viv.”
I’m willing to guess they’ve been together long enough that they’re well into morphing into one person.
Both women are similar ages and builds. Tall but even more so in the matching red bottomed heels they’re wearing.
What a gift to be in love that long. “It’s a pleasure to meet you ladies, and I’m certainly glad to hear that Margeaux has good things to say about me.
I’m currently angling to be her son-in-law. ”
The laugh shared between the three of us makes me feel like we’ve known each other for years rather than minutes. “From what we’ve heard, dear, you already are. I remember that boy’s seventh birthday party.”
Viv interrupts to add, “Oh, we’ll have to see if we still have the pictures. I’ll make you some copies. Little Chase was about the cutest thing you had ever laid eyes on.”
Still is. Blair continues. “I suppose he got fed up seeing all the grown-ups so happy because he declared to the entire backyard that he would never be getting married. It was gross. You must be something special to have snatched his heart right up.” I stammer out something that resembles a thank you before each of them loop their hands through my elbows so I’m sandwiched between them.
“Come on, dear, let’s hear about these pieces.
We’re quite undecided which to purchase. ”
This is the most overwhelming and amazing experience of my life.