7. Chapter 7
On Friday night, Jake sat in front of the TV on the big sofa in the student center with his arms crossed and frowning.
He wasn’t really watching it, but somebody had changed the channel to Nickelodeon and there was some new cartoon on called Spongebob Squarepants. Jake thought he felt like how the squid dude looked.
Mindy came up behind him and shook his shoulder. “Come on. I thought we were going to Sharkey’s.”
“I don’t feel like it,” Jake said, scowling at the TV where a crab wearing pants ranted about money.
Mindy leaned over the back of the sofa. She had a Tootsie Roll pop in her mouth. “Seriously? You just going to sit here all night?”
“ YoU jUsT gOiNg To SiT hErE aLl NiGhT ,” Jake mocked in a high-pitched voice.
Mindy took the sucker from her mouth. “Geez. Who put sandpaper on your toilet seat?”
“Nobody.” He snatched the lollypop from her and stuck it in his mouth.
She scoffed. “What the hell’s wrong with you?”
He twirled the sucker around in his mouth as he thought about it because he didn’t really know.
Well, he did, but he didn’t know why. He’d had hookups before.
Lots of them. Mindy was one, in fact. Sort of.
And each time, it wasn’t a big deal. He didn’t think about it much after that.
So, essentially, it should be that way with Ezra, right?
Yes, he’s a guy, and no, Jake hadn’t done anything with guys before, but essentially , when you get right down to it, it was simply just another hookup.
Right? And it shouldn’t mean anything anyway since it was for Ezra to practice.
To be with somebody else.
That wasn’t Jake.
And that’s where Ezra was right now. Out with Sean. On their big date.
It bothered Jake. It bothered him a lot.
Not just because the only reason Sean was on a date with Ezra was because he was hot now. It had been the whole point of this, to make Ezra more appealing to Sean, but it bothered Jake nonetheless.
And then there was the possibility they might fuck.
Jake had been thinking about that way too much.
Who would be the top and who would be the bottom?
He didn’t think Ezra had ever had sex before, but he didn’t really know.
So, Sean might get to enjoy Ezra’s big dick.
Sean might get to suck it or ride it. Or maybe Ezra would do the riding.
Would Ezra let Sean fuck him? Jake didn’t know and it was driving him crazy. Jake crunched down on the sucker.
Mindy smacked his arm. “Jake!”
“Nothing’s wrong,” he lied, chewing on the candy.
“Okay, then let’s go. Everybody’s downtown.”
That was true. It was Friday night, and the student center was usually deserted. Everyone was out drinking, blowing off steam, and getting sweaty on dance floors. That’s what Jake ordinarily would be doing.
He wondered if that’s what Ezra and Sean were doing.
Jake glanced at the time on the VCR. It was a little after nine.
Ezra and Sean had planned to see The Blair Witch Project and then go have a drink at The Cellar.
And Jake didn’t know this because he’d been eavesdropping or anything.
He just happened to be behind the music shelves in the choir room while Ezra and Sean were standing nearby.
And then Jake just happened to hear what they were saying.
That’s all. And the fact that Jake knew the movie would be over by now wasn’t because he’d gone through the dozens of newspapers in the student center so he could find the show times.
He just saw it. Already laid out on a table.
On the exact right page. So, he was just lucky. That’s all it was.
But if the movie was over, they’d be at The Cellar now.
The place had some quiet corners and nooks. Tea lights on each table. Romantic.
Jake stood up. “All right, let’s go out. Let’s go to The Cellar.”
“What?” Mindy said. “But everybody’s at Sharkey’s.”
“It’s cool,” Jake said, walking toward the exit. “We’ll just get a couple drinks there and catch up with them later.”
“I don’t want to go there.” Mindy followed along, digging around in her purse.
Jake put his arm around her. “I’ll buy you a drink. And some fries if you want some. They’ve got good cheese fries.”
“Ugh. Fine,” she replied, shrugging his arm off her.
When they got there, the place was sort of crowded, but there were still some open tables. Jake looked around until he spotted the back of Sean’s curly, dumb head and elf ears, all the way over in a round booth in the corner. Ezra was sitting next to him. He was smiling.
Jake wasn’t.
Mindy was making her way to one of the bar stools, but Jake turned her toward an empty table. “Let’s sit over here.” It was across the bar and the perfect place to watch without being seen.
“But I wanted to—Whatever. Fine.” Mindy took a seat.
Jake took the seat next to her and held up the menu so his face was hidden. He peeked over the top to see Ezra and Sean talking. Jake wondered what about.
“Um, what are you doing?” Mindy said.
“Uh, just looking to see what’s good.” Jake pretended to peruse all the signature cocktails and appetizers. “What do you usually get? A Screwdriver?”
“No. Rum and Coke.”
“Okay. Be right back.”
Jake got up to go over to the end of the bar where Ezra and Sean wouldn’t see him, but he could still sort of see them.
As he ordered the drinks, he watched them.
He wasn’t really sure what he was looking for.
They weren’t going to fuck in the middle of this place.
But they looked like they were having a good time.
And Jake didn’t like that.
He got his and Mindy’s drinks and took them over. He held up the menu again and peeked over it, taking a sip of his beer.
“This is a ginger ale with bourbon,” Mindy said, pointing to her drink.
“Oh. Sorry,” Jake said. “Want me to get you another one?”
“No.” She took a drink. “But you owe me a rum and coke later.”
“Yeah, sure,” Jake said distractedly, watching Sean and Ezra laugh together. What in the hell could Sean be saying that would make Ezra laugh?
“Jake?” Mindy looked to where he was looking. “What are you….? Oh.” Then she looked at him. “Are you spying on your friend’s date?”
“No!” He tried to look offended, but then he hung his head. “Yeah. Kinda.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “I just want to make sure everything goes okay.”
Mindy looked at him for a few moments, sipping her drink, her head tilting and a realization crossing over her features. She set down her drink. “You know, if you want to date Ezra, you could just ask him.”
“What?” Jake made a face. “Who says I want to date him?”
She gave him a look that said really?
“Okay, fine. Yeah. I like him. So what?”
Mindy shrugged. “So, nothing. It’s not a big deal.”
“Well, it is a little bit.” Jake looked down at his beer. It was kind of a big deal because this meant he was gay. Or maybe bi. Probably bi. That was probably more like it. He’d liked having sex with women. He’d liked having sex with Mindy. But no one had ever made him feel the way Ezra did.
Jake fiddled with the menu as he watched Sean reach across the table for Ezra’s hand. His heart leaped in his chest.
Mindy saw it too. “You want me to go over and talk to them?”
“Huh? No.”
“I could tell you how it’s going.” She pretended to study a crack in the wooden table. “Or spill my drink on Sean.”
“Yes. Go.”
Mindy got up with her drink and sashayed on over to Ezra and Sean.
Jake watched from behind the menu. He watched Ezra turn to greet her.
They chatted for a couple minutes, while Sean looked bored.
Then Jake watched Mindy situate herself in the booth right in between them, much to Sean’s great annoyance. Jake grinned.
She sat there for a while, but didn’t spill anything, and when she came back, Jake asked. “What happened?”
She shrugged, sitting down and sipping her drink. “It’s just a normal first date.” She tilted her head at him. “Did you know that whole Blair Witch thing isn’t real?”
“Who gives a shit! Did you hear what they were talking about?” Jake glanced over. They weren’t sitting next to each other anymore, but they were still talking. “How did they seem? Like, did Ezra seem like he was bored? Or maybe annoyed and wanting to leave?”
“Jake.” Mindy shook her head. “It’s just one date. They’re not engaged.”
“I know that. But what if they sleep together?”
Mindy lifted one corner of her mouth in thought. “Hmmm. I got the sense it was more friendly than sexy.”
“Really?” That made Jake feel a little better.
“Yeah. I mean, I obviously can’t read minds, but that’s the sense I got.” She paused, studying Jake. “You’re really into him, aren’t you?”
Jake looked down at his beer. “The only reason Sean is out with him right now is because of how he looks. That’s the only reason Sean even likes him. But I liked Ezra how he was before. He’s smart, he’s funny, and we have all this stuff in common.” Jake sighed. “But he doesn’t like me that way.”
“How do you know?” Mindy asked.
Jake didn’t really want to tell her about that stuff from the other night, and that Ezra didn’t even kiss him goodbye. Ezra would have if Ezra liked him that way. Ezra would have if he’d been Sean.
“I can just tell,” Jake said.
“Well, the only way he’s going to know is if you tell him.” Mindy took a drink. “Right? He doesn’t know how you feel.”
Jake didn’t think he could or should tell Ezra anything. What would be the point? Jake looked over at him and Sean again. Still talking, still smiling. Ezra clearly preferred Sean, and maybe Jake should just get over it.
He sighed. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Thought you were going to buy me some cheese fries.”
He rolled his eyes. “Just come on.”
Jake and Mindy left, and Jake didn’t go anywhere else. He went back to his place, up to his room, lay down on his bed, and tried not to think about what Ezra and Sean were doing right that minute.