Page 121 of Explosive Prejudice

Scratching my jaw, I shrugged. “So like I said, I have enough to get us what we need to get around. Your dad is clearly trying to push you into a corner, and fuck me if I’ll let him succeed.” My arm pulled him tighter. “So you’ll have to get used to living in a tiny-ass room with me.”

Pouting his lips, he then huffed. “I guess if we’re sharing a bed, I’ll find a way to deal with it.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you sleep naked?”

“Often.”

“So yeah.” He grinned. “Definitely.”

Ugh, the brat.

Diesel

One month later

“Soon, we’ll no longer need supervision when we meet,” Iván said, winking in the direction of the warden, who stood with his back against the door while watching the visiting room.

I smiled. “I still can’t believe you’re getting out next month.”

Iván nudged my hands, which were right next to his. “Missing your big brother, are you, Principito?”

“Of course I am, stupid.”

Iván had been locked up for my entire adult life. Picturing us, now, acting the same way we used to? Fucking wild. And while I couldn’t wait for him to get out, there were still things I wasn’t sure about. The first on the list was telling him that his little brother, who had been with girls his whole life, was now very much involved with a guy.

Iván wasn’t homophobic. At least, not too much. As long as it didn’t involve him, he didn’t care. Sure, he sometimes spat out homophobic shit, but so did I. We grew up in a toxic environment that included my dad and my uncle, who, more than once, told us that there was nothing worse than a homo. I didn’t give a shit about what either of those pricks said or thought, but it wasn’t the same with Iván. I wanted him to approve of me and, mostly, to approve of Shay-Lee. No one in my life approved of Shay-Lee so far. At first, I didn’t think it would matter, but it did.

We’d been living together for the past few weeks after things blew up with Andrei. Since the little brat couldn’t get used to how small the motel room was, I rented us a small apartment. It wasn’t fancy, but decent enough to make him stop complaining.

And while things weren’t ideal, living together was. Other than the fact he was a walking mess who couldn’t keep his clothes in order even if his life depended on it, we got along great. More than great, actually. Sticking to our word, we tried our best to live as normally as possible. It wasn’t easy with us still going to school and pretending not to know each other. The fact that Andrei and the guys knew about us didn’t matter. The main reason we kept our relationship a secret was to protect Shay-Lee. He couldn’t come out as gay, not now when his dad was already doing everything in his power to make his life hell. Therefore, coming out would draw unwanted attention to our current living situation.

One good thing we’d learned in the past few weeks was that the contract Shay-Lee signed, forbidding him from making any profits out of his social platforms without his dad’s consent, would need to be renewed once Shay-Lee graduated. Obviously, Shay-Lee wasn’t about to renew it, meaning that in two weeks, he’d be able to start to make money for himself. He needed something to prove to himself that he could survive without his prick of a dad.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” Iván asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.

Shifting in my chair, I leaned my elbows on the metal table that separated us and cleared my throat. “There’s something I need to tell you.” Somehow, words felt heavy. When I had this conversation with Kai, I had no problem admitting I liked Shay-Lee’s dick, but now, not as much. Looking at Iván, he stared back at me with the same eyes as Carmen and Mom. What if he never looked at me the same? Andrei definitely wouldn’t. I’d already lost one brother. Could I lose another? The fear was visceral, but then I thought of Shay-Lee and how much I wanted him to feel accepted. Iván would be out in less than a month, meaning they’d meet and hang out. I wasn’t about to hide Shay-Lee as if he was some dirty little secret when he was the greatest thing to ever happen to me.

“Camilo?” Iván said, a nervous smile on his face.

“Yeah, well, shit.” I rubbed my jaw. “I’m seeing someone.”

Iván pressed his palms together, his smile growing. “Well, that’s great.” He smacked my arm. “Please tell me she’s a good cook. I can’t wait to eat normal food once I’m out of here.”

I sighed. “He can’t cook for shit.”

Watching the expression change on his face, going from excited to shocked, was like watching a car crash in slow motion.

It was an utter disaster.

“He?” Iván frowned, obviously hoping he heard wrong.

“Yeah, he.”

Once realization sunk, he leaned closer, his eyes narrowed. “You a homo?”

That hurt.

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