Chapter 13
CHAPTER 13
CONSTANTINE
When I get home, Leo is on the couch. He doesn’t look upset, and when I look for signs that he’s been crying, I see none.
“Hey. How was your sleepover?”
“How was yours?” He laughs.
“I didn’t?—”
He holds his hand up. “Don’t even try. You’re wearing last night’s clothes. Did you spend the night with Julius?”
I open my mouth and close it again. I’m not ready for this conversation. We didn’t talk this morning because I rushed home for Leo, and now I’m getting the third degree.
“It’s not your business.”
Leo narrows his eyes. “It kinda is because if you break up, not only will we have to move out, but I like Julius, and I like Stillwater.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I want to stay here.”
“What makes you think we’re moving? We just got here.”
His face goes all red, and he shifts his gaze away.
“I deleted a message from your phone.”
“You did what?”
He huffs. “I know you applied for that job at the fancy restaurant in LA.”
I sit next to him. “I did.”
“The other day, when you were in the shower, you got a message from them. I panicked and deleted the message.”
“How do you even know my passcode?”
He rolls his eyes. “It wasn’t hard to guess. It’s my birthday.”
Great. And now I feel old.
“Okay. Time to change my passcode. Why did you delete the message?”
“Because I don’t want to go. I’ve made friends here.”
“Would one of these friends be Kay, by any chance?”
He shrugs. “She’s nice.”
I don’t press the Kay topic because he’ll tell me when he’s ready. He always does.
“I told Kay about me.”
“Oh yeah? And how did she take it?” I ask, pretending I didn’t hear the whole conversation. Somehow, I don’t think it would go down well, even though it was unintentional.
“She hugged me.”
“Wow, that must have taken you by surprise.”
“Yeah. You were right. The people who matter won’t care. Kay and my other friends are pretty well educated on HIV, thanks to the charity project. I’m not ready to tell everyone, but I’m really happy I have a friend who knows.”
I reach out and squeeze his shoulder.
“I’m really happy for you, bud. And if you need any kind of reassurance, we’re not moving anywhere.”
“Serious?”
“Of course. I love it here. I like baking for Bittersweet, and Stillwater is a pretty nice place.”
“And how about Julius?”
I raise my brow.
“Come on. Don’t treat me like I’m a kid. Last week, I know I walked in just after you’d been kissing.”
“How do you know?”
“Because your face was all red like you were running a marathon and you wouldn’t look at me. Plus, all your answers were one word.”
Yeah, I remember that. I’d thought it was a close call, but we were caught anyway.
“Okay, so how would you feel if Julius and I were dating?”
“If you’re serious about him, then I don’t care. I’m happy for you. You’ve already given up so much for me. I don’t want you to think you have to stay single forever.”
I pull him into my arms and squeeze him tight.
“Dude. My hair!”
I laugh, and for the first time since I found out about his diagnosis, I feel he’s going to be okay. We’re going to be okay. Yeah, our lives will always be different, but we have all the important people around us.
“Shit. The message.” I pull out my phone and touch the screen. The message from Piper flashes right in the center, which means Julius saw it.
“What’s wrong?”
“I ran out on Julius after you sent your message. When my phone dinged again, I thought it was you and asked him to check it.”
“He’s going to think you’re leaving.”
“Yeah.”
“You have to fix it, Connie.”
“I will.”
I unlock the phone and reply to Piper’s message, declining her offer. I never really liked LA anyway.
Then I pull up Julius’s number.
Me: Are you home? Can I see you?
Julius: I’m visiting my sister today.
No other messages follow, and I’m gutted that he hasn’t acknowledged my second question. If he’s with his sister, I’m not going to hunt him down, but I will see him today.
Julius is mine, and I’m his, and by the time I’m finished with him, there will be zero doubts of that.
“How do you feel about going to the Academy for brunch? We haven’t done anything together in a while,” I say.
“Yeah, sounds good.”
“Great. Then you can tell me all about your sleepover.”
“Not a chance.”
“Remember who’s paying the food bill.”
“Ugh. You’re the worst.”
“Nah. I just love you too much. And I can be as nosy as you.”
“Fine. But I want to know all about Julius.”
I laugh. “Fair trade.”