Chapter Eight #2
He nods. “I do. I mean, I know of him. Hot guy that looks like Dean from Supernatural?” He chuckles. “Hard not to notice him, really. Used to come here, back when he moved to Ternbay. Not lately, though. Why?”
I don’t really want to tell Micah that I’m curious whether or not he’s ever dated Caleb—or maybe even if someone else I know has.
Not without potentially outing someone who may not necessarily be comfortable with being out anyway, which I’m not sure if Caleb is or not.
I mean, he didn’t seem it to me when he told me he was pan, but I don’t want to assume anything.
“You’re not trying to set me up with someone else, are you?
” Micah quirks an eyebrow up at me. “Because, if you are, I’ll tell you I already barked up that tree.
Besides the language barrier being a big issue for him, he also has a kid.
Not to say there’s anything wrong with Cameron—because there’s not, he’s super nice—but I just don’t see step-parenting anyone’s kiddos in my future. ”
“Oh,” I say flatly.
“Are you trying to set him up with Marcus? Because honestly, I think that’s a bad idea…”
“Why?”
“Caleb doesn’t strike me as the type who wants to be someone’s secret fuck buddy.
” Then, Micah grimaces. “That’s kind of why I ended things with Marcus too, honestly.
And, I know, you two are a couple, so it’s not like I’m saying this to, like, be mean or anything, but I just didn’t want to be an afterthought anymore, you know? ”
I nod. “I can understand that.”
“And it’s not like you guys were open to being a throuple or whatever…”
“Oh gosh, no. I’m okay with him seeing guys on the side, but I’ve always been pretty adamant about keeping that out of Brody’s line of sight.”
“Can I ask why?”
I chew on the inside of my cheek for a moment, trying to come up with a response.
I have nothing I can give him besides my honesty.
“I’m not sure how everyone would react to open polyamory.
I’m not even entirely certain how to explain something like that to my son.
One thing I am positive about is that it wouldn’t be anything that anyone in this town would be comfortable with, since it's still mostly conservative here.”
He smirks. “It would certainly be uncharted waters, that’s for sure…”
“Brody used to get picked on enough at school. I can’t imagine how much worse something like having polyamorous parents would make it for him, now that all his peers have mostly gotten over the novelty of him using his cochlear to hear.”
Micah snorts. “Kids will find anything to pick on, trust me. If anything is different at all, they will point it out and exploit the shit out of it. Wear a brand to school that isn’t the in thing? Watch out, you’ll hear about it.”
“Was it like that for you being gay?”
“Thankfully, no. Not where I grew up, anyway. Here, I can imagine it being a lot harder. Not completely so, though. Tides are changing in Ternbay, ever since Evan Waters came out anyway.”
“Yeah, but last I’d heard, he packed up and moved away to go be with his new husband. He didn’t exactly stick around and deal with the aftermath.”
Micah shrugs. “What aftermath? Sure, there were a few whispers and rumblings about it, but that’s pretty much the norm for any town that’s fueled on gossip and single-track ways of thinking.
I haven’t really noticed any outward hatred or bigotry in the wake of his admission, so I count that as a win, really.
I’ve been more open about my sexuality and haven’t gotten any hate for it.
Mostly just uneducated ignorance. There are some who keep casually using the f-slur, like a regular part of speech, but they come around and change their tune easily enough when I remind them just how derogatory it is. ”
Suddenly, there’s a chime, and Micah shoots up, apologizing quickly before taking off to go check in a new patron. He’s back quickly, however, startling me again when he says, “There’s someone here to see you, Lauren.”
My eyes flick up to the mirror, and Micah is walking away, leaving Caleb standing in the doorway of the dividing wall that separates this room from the main part of the gym.
“I’m sorry,” he signs. “Can we talk? You left without even looking at me, Lauren. I can’t shout to you the way Marcus can, but I want to be heard. Please.”
I sigh and nod, resigned. I watch his reflection as he crosses the room, then sits directly in front of me.
“I only found out that Marcus was your ‘husband’ when I went to go interview for the job on the boat. Not that it’s an excuse for not telling you sooner, because it’s not.
And don’t be mad at him for not saying anything either, because he’s right, I did ask him not to.
I wanted to be the one to tell you, but no time seemed like a good time to bring it up.
He didn’t put two-and-two together until right before we both went for that interview anyway.
Again, not excusing the behavior, I’m simply explaining… ”
“Okay,” I drawl skeptically. “So what shared past do you two have?”