Page 69 of Just a Footnote

Okay?

Okay.

Picture

Oh my god is that Miles

Yeah

He fell asleep onthe couch

Archer let me drawn on his face

Is it permanent marker …

I’m not that evil

It’s washable

What’s on his left cheek?

A dick

Uh

What?

Well I hate to say it but it looks more like a cactus

Well Liam

It’s the spitting image of your dick

I hate you

No you don’t

No I don’t

10

Spring and summer pass by in a flurry of texts. No sexting ever happens. Just friendly texts that remind Aiden how much he really misses Liam when they’re not talking. Caught up in the push and pull of wanting Liam had made it easy to forget their friendship. At the end of the day Liam is his friend, maybe even his best friend. Returning to radio silence one day might kill him. He hopes they never return to that, because he’s not sure his suddenly fragile heart can take it.

He takes a summer class that isn’t available the rest of the year. He hangs out with Anna a lot. She drags him to a few questionable off Broadway plays. Liam finds that hilarious for some reason. After one particularly awful play, they head out to a bar that’s seemingly themed around Dolly Parton’s movies. There’s even a drag show. Aiden likes that way better than any play

“So…” Anna trails off, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “Are you ready to talk about it yet?”

Aiden takes a long sip of his whiskey as he watches the stage. “Talk about what?”

He feels her eyes on him, heavy and knowing. “You’re in love.”

“Okay,” Aiden says carefully. He swallows thickly before glancing her way. Her gaze is shrewd, calculating in a way that should frighten him. But it’s kind of nice to be seen, to be known, without telling. Sharing is something he doesn’t like to willingly do. But he doesn’t really mind when his friends pull things out of him. Anna reminds him a lot of Miles in that way.

Anna sends him a soft smile. “Come on, Aiden. I’m a safe space. I told you about that guy that I let–”

“Let’s not repeat that please,” Aiden interrupts her with a full body shudder.

She laughs loudly, dramatically slapping one hand on the table between them. “Tell me. I deserve it.”

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