Page 105 of The Barkeep and the Bro

“I suppose you really can teach an old dog new tricks.”

“You’re not that old.”

Right now, I felt alive and strong, a type of youth that wasn’t measured by years on this earth.

36

MITCH

Two weeks later, I felt a familiar type of being old—the sore back.

“Lift with your legs, Mitch!” Cal yelled at me as we lifted his massive audio soundboard. I managed to release one hand from the grip to flip him the bird.

“Hire a moving company!” I put down the piece of furniture, and Cal had no choice but to do the same. I rubbed my tight lower back.

“You gotta protect yourself.” Cal started massaging my back, kneading the muscles like he was stretching bread.

“What are you doing?” I pushed him away.

“Trying to help.”

“This is how you can help.” Leo approached us with a lamp in one hand and shaking a bottle of aspirin in the other. I swiped the bottle and tossed two pills down my throat. “Drugs.”

“Medication,” I said.

“Remember to lift with your knees.” Cal demonstrated by doing squats, which would’ve annoyed me had I not been impressed by his flexibility, something you don’t regularly see with a chubby guy like him.

Cal had a recording studio setup in his basement. The basement and the bedrooms were the only rooms that weren’t staged with fake furniture since Cal and Josh still needed to live here.

“Mitch is right, though. Why didn’t you hire a moving company?” Leo asked. He wore a faded South Rockland High School basketball t-shirt from when he was on the team for a brief season. A V of sweat trickled down the middle. “Russ can afford it.”

“Russ isn’t my sugar daddy. And excuse me for being sentimental, for wanting my closest friends to help me pack up my childhood home. Our childhood home.”

Growing up, the Hogan basement had been home base for after school hanging out. Cal’s mom usually had snacks at the ready for us. Even though he made it his own, there was plenty that reminded me of the old days. The funky wallpaper in the bathroom, the scratch on the wall from when I threw my Nintendo controller.

Nostalgia hit my chest. Another marker of the passage of time, and I could tell the guys felt it, too.

“We had a lot of good times in this house.” Leo craned his head around the room.

“You’re welcome to come to Russ’s house now.”

“It’s your house, too.” I pressed a finger into Cal’s chest, making him squirm.

“Wild.” Cal shook his head in disbelief. “I’m moving in with my boyfriend.”

“Is Josh excited?” Leo asked.

“He’s already picked out his room and is there with Quentin, playing some kind of VR thing Russ got him. My kid is going to be so spoiled.” Cal said it ominously, but deep down, I knew it warmed his heart. After years of struggling financially and always worrying about not being able to provide for Josh, he had found love with a man who would make that go away. Not that Cal was going to be some kept man. But now, he could focus on pursuing his voiceover career full-time.

He could breathe.

“Russ is a great guy,” Leo said proudly. “You did well.”

“I came back to Sourwood as a last chance.” Cal’s voice went wobbly with emotion.

“Let’s save the teary moments for after we’re done hauling shit,” I said.

“You’re right.” Cal wiped at his eyes. “Let’s try this again.” Cal slapped the soundboard. “This time, squat and lift with your legs.”

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