Page 45 of Romance Languages

This was supposed to be me? I flicked my eyes at Amos, who had no notes.

“And this is how you are tonight.” Everett dipped his head again, then popped it back up. New scene. New Julian. He stood up straight, had almost a cocky, genuine smile. He looked around at guys in the club. He might as well have worn sunglasses, too.

I couldn’t help but grin. I never saw myself like that. What was it like to walk through the world with that kind of confidence? Maybe the key was not realizing you had it.

I gave him a round of applause.

“Ev, what are you doing?” Raleigh, his boyfriend, joined our table. He, Hutch, and Chase had come back from the bar with beers. “Are you doing that thing where you have to be the center of attention?”

“You’re one to talk, Raleigh. Your ego knows no bounds.” Everett shot his boyfriend a loving glare. They had started out the school year as mortal enemies, and even though they were very much in love…they were still kinda enemies.

“That was quite a line for beer. This establishment should look into hiring a second bartender. Surely, they have the volume to justify the expense,” Chase said, leaning against our table. I remembered when it was just the four of us. Now it was a tight squeeze with Hutch and Raleigh, making for a cozy feel. I loved that our crew was expanding.

“What are we talking about?” Hutch threw an arm around Amos.

“I was merely demonstrating to Julian how he seems different,” Everett explained. “A good different.”

Raleigh studied me now, too. “Did you part your hair a new way?”

“No, Raleigh.” Everett rolled his eyes. “It’s not the hair. It’s his whole demeanor.”

“Can you guys stop talking about me like I’m not here?”

“I believe they’re talking about you like you’re the only one here,” Chase corrected.

“Julian looks great. Leave the guy alone,” Hutch said, sipping his beer. “Let him enjoy his night.”

“Thank you!”

“This is all a good thing,” Amos said. “You have an aura of confidence.”

Everett’s eyes bulged open with realization. “Oh my God, you’re having sex aren’t you?”

It was a good thing I wasn’t mid-drink because I would’ve spat it out. Was Everett a drama teacher by day and demon psychic by night? All eyes turned to me, hungry for the truth.

“What? No. Everett, that’s your answer for everything,” I said. “Oh, the mail is late. The postman is probably getting some. Oh, Principal Aguilar is in a good mood. He must be having great sex. You’ve been hanging around our students too much because you have sex perpetually on the brain.”

“I’ll take some credit for that,” Raleigh said with a puffed-out chest.

“It’s a simple yes or no answer,” Amos said.

But it wasn’t so simple, not so simple at all. I couldn’t tell them about Seamus, because then I’d have to tell them why Seamus and I were fooling around in the first place. I’d have to untangle the years of lies I’d fed them about my fraudulent sex life and then untangle the sticky gray area of me getting it on with a straight friend. No, this was all too much for a night out on the town.

And I kinda liked that Seamus and I had this secret. Amos and Everett didn’t reveal every detail of their sex lives with their boyfriends (although Everett gotrealclose at times). Why did I have to just because I was single?

“No,” I uttered, getting a tiny spark of excitement over this secret that Seamus and I shared.

Maybe it was in my head, but I thought I saw them all deflate at the news.

“Well, don’t waste whatever you’re feeling on us,” Amos said. “Take this newfound confidence and unleash it.”

He waved his hand at the myriad of gentlemen before us.

Wild thoughts swirled in my head. I was…attractive. I was…a catch. I was…sexual. Whywouldn’ta guy in here want me?

I scanned the room and locked eyes with a tall, burly guy who’d just gotten a beer from the bar. He had a thick beard and dark eyes that told me he was soulful but also capable of getting down.

I gave him a sly smile. He smiled back.

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