11. Anime Chic #2
“Who was he agreeing with?”
“Okay, fine. Me.”
“Hmmmm.” Her face hardened, her body leaning towards him so he wouldn’t miss a single sarcastic syllable. “So what does that entail? A set number of words you can say to him each day? Carry around a yard stick to make sure you’re never within a few feet? Reserve the kitchen in advance?”
“You’re making it sound ridiculous.”
“It is ridiculous, kid.” She sat down beside him on the bathtub, wincing as she did.
“Ah, it’s cold.” Then she took a deep breath and his body followed, the chemical-filled air prickling his throat and lungs.
“Listen to me: People have partners and best friends simultaneously. That’s a thing that happens. Quite frequently.”
Outside, a streetcar rattled by, and he turned to the window as if it were the most interesting sound in the world. “Jacinda deserves his full attention.”
“Can I be blunt?”
“Are you ever not?”
“You’d be amazed by how much I hold back.” She took his shoulders to force him to meet her eyes. “You’ve always had a talent for making connections, but you’re not so great at…” Her lips pressed together, afraid to let out the wrong words.
“Keeping them,” he supplied, because it was the truth.
“Letting them stay. There’s a difference. It’s rarely their choice.”
He couldn’t handle her borderline pleading tone, as if she was begging him not to ruin yet another relationship. How did she not realize that was what he was trying to do? “This is getting dangerously close to after-school-special territory.”
“I’m not sitting backwards on a chair, so I think we’re safe.” She gave his cheek a not-so-gentle pat. “It’s sweet you want to help their relationship, but if it can’t survive without your interference, then it wasn’t meant to be.”
“But they deserve—”
A primal noise came bubbling from her throat, then she pointed her finger in his face.
“Talk one more time about what someone else deserves, and I’ll ruin your hair on purpose.
” He honestly didn’t know if it was a bluff or not.
“You deserve a friend like Dae, so I don’t want to hear any more bullshit about it.
Now get in the shower, I don’t want to have to restrain your mom if I burn off all your hair. ”
??? ???
The pink was so deep it bordered on watered-down wine, but Theo was into it. The big reveal to his mom was underwhelming. She gave him a long stare then nodded. “I don’t hate it.”
The boys made up for her lacklustre reaction by being sufficiently shocked and supportive. Jason said it was cool, and Caleb said he wanted to do it too, which Theo strictly forbade. Dae didn’t say anything, but the dumbstruck look on his face was enough.
Theo was in his room experimenting with different styles when Dae knocked and hovered by his door holding a steaming bowl of spicy smelling stew.
“Pizza is not an actual meal for—”
“If you’re about to call me a ‘growing boy’ I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Dae’s lips pressed together. For some reason, his non-smile was bothering Theo more and more. He wanted the dimples. He hated that he wanted them, hated that he couldn’t ask for them, and hated that he wanted to ask for them.
“How’d you know I had pizza?”
“Really?” Dae huffed. “It was either grilled cheese sandwiches, beans on toast, or pizza. I took a guess.” He put the bowl on Theo’s desk. “Here.”
“Actually, I have plans with Jordan. She demanded to see my hair in person.” Why was he lying? He never lied to Dae. “We’re getting some food, but thanks.”
Weird. He was being weird. And Theo’s weirdness was making Dae weird.
“Okay.” His entire body seemed like it was made of wood. “I’ll put it in the fridge.”
“Thanks. I better go.”
Dae stepped aside to let him pass. Theo couldn’t look at him as he did, couldn’t watch him try to hide the hurt. Whatever was happening to them was Theo’s fault, and they both knew it.
“The pink suits you.” Dae was using his shy voice, the one that came out when he wasn’t sure if he should be saying what he was. “It’s bold. Fun. Like you.”
Theo paused in the doorway next to him, close enough to smell his shampoo and the spices he used to cook, but his eyes wouldn’t go any higher than his chest.
“Thanks.” Just look up, he told himself. Let him know things are fine. Eat the fucking stew. But he didn’t. Couldn’t. And it was killing him. “See you later.”
He considered actually going to Jordan’s, but he’d had enough of being called out for one day.
Instead, he wandered down the main road, watching the cars go by.
The relentless whoosh as they passed was soothing, and not only because they kicked up swirls of fallen leaves.
The sound was almost enough to drown out his inner voice’s full-on soliloquy about what a shit he was being.
Dae didn’t tell him to back off; he came up with that on his own.
And what was he going to do? Keep lying to him?
Keep coming up with bogus things to do so he didn’t have to take up his time?
No. That was dumb. People simultaneously had partners and best friends. If his aunt said it, it must be true.
Except…
He bounced on the balls of his feet to expel the restless energy that was making him feel like the human version of Pop Rocks.
There were the moments of weakness, the times when the line became blurry, times when whatever was roiling beneath the surface refused to stay buried.
And he needed it to stay buried if he had any hope of keeping Dae in his life.
But he knew it wouldn’t if he stayed close to him, especially not if he got between him and Jacinda.
If that something crawled its way into Theo’s mind, heart, and body, there’d be no going back. And then everything would be at risk.
Everything.
Okay, fine. So he would back off a bit. It wasn’t like Dae would mind, if it helped him with his girlfriend. Theo would be a good friend in a different way. Problem solved.
Everything would be fine.