Page 107 of Poolside

Chuck laughed. “Shut up and swim.”

Tommy blew him a kiss, and after a deep breath, slid back under the surface. He found his rhythm quickly, stopping every four or five strokes to glance up at the flagpole. Minutes passed as Chuck watched him, filled with pride at how far Tommy had come.

It would have been easy for him to call the swim a loss after leaving his job. But Chuck knew Tommy, now better than ever, and he knew he needed to see this through. He needed to come out on the other end with the knowledge that he’ddonethe thing. Chuck had seen it over and over again with the athletes he coached—the first medal after coming back from an injury, the sweet relief of setting a new personal best after months of coming up short.

Tommy was almost to the dock. Chuck saw the grin on his face as he checked his marker one final time. His pace sped up—of course it did—as everyone started to cheer. Maggie bounced up and down while Sagewhooped,her fist in the air. David and Darius were down on their knees pounding on the planks, their chants of “Tom-my, Tom-my” loud and bright in the midday heat.

As soon as the front of the boat nudged the piling Chuck jumped off, running to hover at the edge of the dock. “Come on, T! Come on, you got it.”

The cheers grew deafening when Tommy’s hand slapped down on the wood by Chuck’s feet. His face popped up from the water, his smile blinding, his wet chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.

This is our family, Chuck thought as he, David, and Darius worked together to pull Tommy up and out of the water.We are surrounded by people who love us.

Tommy flopped down on his back, his whole body trembling. Everyone crowded around him, congratulating him with pats on his head and fist bumps Tommy barely managed to return. The smile on Tommy’s face was huge, showing off every single one of the laugh lines Chuck loved to trace with his fingers. Chuck knelt over him, helping him pull the goggles off even as his panting gasps turned to breathless laughs.

Chuck smiled. “You good down there, love?”

Tommy’s expression softened. “I like that.”

“Like what?”

“You, calling me ‘love.’” Tommy’s hand was cool against Chuck’s cheek.

Chuck leaned into the touch. “It’s who you are.”

“I did it, baby,” Tommy whispered, the words barely audible over the loud conversation around them.

Chuck leaned forward, pressing a slow kiss to Tommy’s mouth.

“Who wants cake?”

Rebecca was met with loud cheers as she pulled the fixings for strawberry shortcake from a cooler. Chuck walked over to help as they assembled the dessert: an open biscuit, homemade whipped cream, and juicy sliced strawberries. Once Chuck had made two, he carried them over to Tommy, who hadn’t moved from where he was sprawled on the sun-warmed wood.

Chuck set a plate on Tommy’s chest and sat down beside him.

“Strawberry shortcake?” Tommy’s eyes went wide. He dipped a finger in the whipped cream and brought it to his mouth, sucking it clean. “Fuck me, that’s good.”

Laughing, Chuck helped Tommy sit up. He would need to stretch after all of that effort, but it could wait for a little bit. Right now, Chuck couldn’t imagine anywhere else in the world he’d rather be. “Happy birthday, T.”

Tommy leaned over and kissed him, a soft meeting of their lips that tasted like sugar. When he pulled away, he looked at Chuck with the kind of adoration he’d only ever dreamed of seeing.

Tommy looked at Chuck like he loved him.

“I love you, baby,” Tommy said, like he could read his mind.

“I love you, too.”

The consensus was that the strawberry shortcake was the perfect dessert for a hot day. Drinks were passed around and someone had produced a speaker. The heat, music, and effortless conversion made for a perfect lake day.

Rebecca and Sage were the first to get in the water, followed by Wade, who’d brought his own inflatable tube to relax in. Keaton was still in his shirt and hat when something he said must have pissed Maggie off and she shoved him off the dock, but any further curiosity on Chuck’s part was interrupted whenStacy’s Momcame on.

“Who put this on?” Darius demanded, rolling his eyes from where he sat with Miguel and Richard.

Tommy climbed to his feet, still in nothing but his Speedo, his skin beginning to get the pink flush of too much sun. He was so handsome, free in his body and in himself, his smile vibrant as he reached for Chuck.

“It’s our song,” he said with a laugh, even though he knew it was silly for them to have a song, and even sillier that their song was one about a teenage boy crushing on his friend’s mom. But it didn’t matter, not when it was something special and precious andtheirs. “Dance with me?”

Chuck took Tommy’s offered hand, laughing as Tommy pulled him in close. Their bare chests brushed, sweat from the midday heat dampening their skin. Chuck draped his arms around Tommy’s broad shoulders, and started to sing along.

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