Page 102 of Poolside

It was quiet for a second. “You like it when I sing?”

Tommy scoffed. “Baby, you have the voice of a literal angel. A hot, half-naked Renaissance angel. Of course I love it when you sing.”

“A half-naked Renaissance angel?”

“Yeah, you know, the ones with cloth draped over their dicks and long legs who play their slutty little harps in the sky.”

Chuck’s laugh was loud and bright, a reminder of how much better he seemed to be doing. Maybe it was the switch he had made to his old medication two weeks ago, or maybe it was the fact that they’d finally liberated him from Leonard’s obnoxious scratching at all hours. Whatever it was, Chuck seemed better, like an invisible weight that had rested on his shoulders was gradually disappearing.

Life had fallen into a comfortable pattern. Sunday mornings were spent at the beach, checking in with each other about how they were doing, about what was working and what wasn’t. One week, Chuck had told him he needed more verbal reminders that Tommy found him physically desirable. Tommy had asked about sleeping over more, to which Chuck confessed he wanted to maintain a little bit of space between them as he continued to stabilize his mental health. Last week, Tommy had told Chuck that, while he was happy to follow Chuck’s lead on sex, he wanted to know more about where Chuck’s head was at on the topic.

There were moments of discomfort in those conversations, moments where Tommy’s gut tightened and fear stole his breath away. But every time, without fail, they waded through the painful bits together. And with every solution they found, every compromise they settled on, he fell a little bit deeper in love with Chuck.

Chuck started singing again, his voice smooth and clear as he hit a high note that Tommy couldn’t imagine reaching. He was happy and content. It didn’t matter that he didn’t know where they were going. He was in Chuck’s hands, and he trusted him. That was enough.

The vehicle slowed down, veering slowly to the right until they came to a stop. The car went quiet. He heard the driver’s door open, and then a wall of warm air hit his skin as his door was opened next.

A soft hand guided him out of the car. “Follow me,” Chuck said, his voice close and gentle.

Tommy followed obediently, shuffling his feet to avoid falling. Luckily, Chuck was looking out for him, and talked him through climbing a few steps.

“Ready?”

Tommy nodded. “My eyelids are sweaty.”

Chuck huffed a laugh as Tommy felt fingers working the knot in the bandana loose.

It took him a moment for his eyes to adjust, to take in the solid wood door in front of him. He turned from side to side, immediately clocking the familiar landmarks of the Lake Murray house.

Shocked and confused, he turned to look at Chuck. “What the fuck are we doing out here?”

Chuck’s grin was almost bashful. “You’ve got an open water swim to do, T.”

“What?”

Just then the front door flew open, and a whole slew of voices shouted “Surprise!”

Tommy gaped when he saw David, Darius, Rebecca, Wade Johnson, Miguel, Keaton, and an older man with salt and pepper hair standing beside them, all wearing party hats that were so small they looked comical. Sage and Maggie stood up on the couch behind them, holding an obviously handmade sign that said “HAPPY BIRTHDAY OLD MAN! SWIM FAR AND DON’T DROWN” in messy blue paint.

He turned back to Chuck. “Baby,” he breathed, reaching for him and tugging him into his arms. “Did you do this?”

Chuck’s cheeks were tinged pink beneath his freckles as he looked at Tommy with a hint of uncertainty in his blue eyes. “Do you like it?”

Tommy struggled to wrap his head around it all. “And you had everyone come out here?”

“Of course I did. I know how you like to put on a show.”

Tommy’s heart felt so light he thought it might lift right out of his chest. He laughed, placing a soft kiss on Chuck's chin. “Thank you,” he whispered, before turning back to the group. “I can’t believe you all showed up for this.”

“I’m only here because I heard you were gonna be wearin’ a Speedo,” Maggie called out, wriggling her eyebrows. Her hair, now dyed blue, was pulled up into two buns high on her head.

“No one wants to see that.” Keaton’s face twisted into a scowl.

David held up his hands. “Come on, people. This is Tommy’s big moment, and we’re all going to be supportive and nice about it.”

“He does look good in a Speedo,” Chuck said, which sent the whole group into a cacophony of groans and laughter and teasing.

Tommy followed everyone into the living room, keeping one arm wrapped around Chuck’s middle the whole time. He was introduced to the older man, Miguel’s husband, Richard, and conferred with Chuck and Keaton to make sure all of the first-time visitors had been given a tour and assigned rooms.

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