27. Cameron
CAMERON
August fourteenth was the worst day of my life, but today, it was a good day.
Not only was it Creamsicle Day, one of the biggest days of the year for Frosty’s, but Nico was here.
I was awake with nervous energy before sunrise, so we headed down to the store early.
I topped the disgustingly strong coffee I got from the farmhouse with a dollop of eggnog soft serve.
My parents were on another level when it came to caffeinating, and they’d also been up like kids on Christmas, ready to visit their babies in the barn.
Dragging my small step ladder over to the wall, I methodically detached the tarp from over the mural.
It might be a while before Nico would be living here with me full-time, but at least I’d get to look at this masterpiece every day. I didn’t care that it wasn’t one of those bold, dramatic pieces from his art show. The mural was whimsical, and I could feel Nico’s touch in every piece of the design.
Gwen arrived around ten and started loading up our small freezer cart with creamsicles in every color.
We didn’t have an ice cream truck in the traditional sense here, but sometimes on particularly hot Saturdays, I attached it to my bike and rode around blasting music on a Bluetooth speaker.
Today, I’d just roll it out the front door and set up on the sidewalk.
Dad helped me move all the tables and chairs back into place in front of the mural.
Mom trailed along behind us, showing me photos she’d taken early this morning of the cows I literally live with on her phone.
The sheriff came by to drop off traffic cones that would close the road in front of Frosty’s for a selection of yard games.
Then, it was go time.
Gwen manned the counter inside, and I took up a spot near one of the small trees out front with the freezer cart.
I had a special set of cornhole boards painted like Christmas trees, and my mom had used her sewing skills to make ornament bean bags.
It was one of the more popular yard games, but we also had giant Jenga and Connect Four, along with chalk in every color.
It wasn’t long before Nico was kneeling on the pavement, drawing seven large snowflakes that the neighborhood kids helped him color in with chalk.
“The mural looks great, by the way,” Mark said when he walked in the front door.
I couldn’t help the smile that overtook my face. “Nico killed it.”
“I’m still waiting for you to tell me I was right.” Mark raised his eyebrows and gestured with his hand to give me an opening.
But I was still the younger brother. “How about I just say thank you? I know better than to give you a soundbite you can use against me later.”
Before long, Gwen and I had both had our breaks, and I was clinging to the shade under the front awning with the cart in front of me.
It had a little umbrella attachment that was a lifeline on days like today.
We still had the street blocked off, but I saw a moving van turn down the street a block down.
I wondered who would be moving today, and how they didn’t know the street was closed, as we’d had signs up in town for a month.
The moving van stopped at the barricade, haphazardly parked sideways across the road, and I started to walk that way to check in with whoever was driving.
Nico popped up from the ground, covered in chalk, and he ran toward the truck.
Nothing could have confused me more than Ted hopping out of the driver’s seat and Nico wrapping him in a hug that he accepted with some awkwardness. Nico dragged Ted by the arm back up the street to Frosty’s.
“Everyone, this is Ted,” Nico said. “He just broke up with his shitty boyfriend, so be nice.”
Ted blushed, and with a small shove from Nico, he was absorbed into the party.
“I was thinking about having to go to my storage unit and figure out what I wanted to bring up here, but it all felt so overwhelming. So, I told my roommate he could sell my mattress, called in all my favors, and had Ted drive my things out as soon as he could.”
Cupping his face in my hands, I pressed my forehead to his. “You are something.”
“Something good, I hope?” Vulnerability laced his voice.
I leaned back to let him see the truth in my eyes when I nodded. “The best.”
As cheesy as it sounds, it felt like one of those romantic slow-motion movie moments where everything froze around me, and all I could see was Nico. In Sleighbell Springs. With a moving truck. I scooped him into my arms as he kissed me in front of the whole town.
“There are children present,” I whispered against his lips when we finally parted. I was still holding him with his legs wrapped around my waist.
“You’re the one with your hands on my ass, sugar.” He chuckled.
Nico’s smile sparkled like sunshine. When he threw his arm over my shoulder, and we turned back to the block party happening behind us, everyone was cheering. I blushed at the attention.
“I guess the cat’s out of the bag,” Nico said, leaning into my ear.
I laughed until I caught Mark's eye, who was standing near my parents, his mouth agape. At least mom and dad seemed pleased. I wrapped my arm around Nico’s waist and pulled him that direction.
“So, hi,” I said, an awkward crack to my voice. “This is a thing.”
Mom immediately pulled Nico into a hug, kissing his cheek and leaving a smudge of purple lipstick. “You know I had a hunch since you were sixteen that this might happen.”
Nico looked at me over my mom’s shoulder.
“That crush Cameron had on you was obvious to everyone but the two of you, apparently,” Dad chimed in, helpfully, as he slapped Nico’s back. “Welcome to the family, son.”
I glared at him, and he laughed.
Mark coughed. I held my breath, waiting for his reaction.
It wasn’t going to change my decision about being with Nico, but it would certainly make things a lot easier if he approved.
Nico moved Mark’s way and held out his hand.
Instead of shaking it, Mark pulled him into a fierce hug.
I released the tension I’d been holding in my shoulders, relaxing.
“I’m sorry we didn’t tell you sooner,” Nico said to Mark. “Things happened this week quicker than either of us was expecting. We weren’t trying to hide it from you.”
Mark shook his head. “I’ve been trying to get you two together all week, but I guess I didn’t need to work that hard.”
The discovery that I was the oblivious Frost brother was not the plot twist I’d been expecting this morning.
Mark put on his big brother face. “You better not fuck it up, though, because I’m not prepared to kill either of you if you do.”
We all laughed at that, but then one of the neighborhood kids ran up to me, pulling on the hem of my shorts.
“Are you out of the red ones?” They asked.
“Nope, let me get you one.” I turned to my family. “Duty calls.”
The rest of the evening passed in a blur.
I sold out of every creamsicle color except for purple—grape was a hard sell, honestly.
My parents caught up on all the town gossip as their old neighbors and friends passed through.
May appeared to take a photo of Nico and me for Sunday’s gossip column while Guadalupe looked on smugly from the sidelines.
August fourteenth had finally been redeemed.