Page 65 of Bend Him, Break Him
“Have you seen the way he fucks around and finds out?” Tim snorted. “He’s badder than your bitch boyfriend.”
“Leon’s my friend, you fa—” Devon caught himself, glaring between Colton and Tim.
When Leon lost his edge to souring Colton’s days, he went to work poisoning Devon against his roommates. It made practice and games uncomfortable and quickly made living together unbearable. But aside from that singular setback, Colton’s days had a positive uptick, and he focused on spending most of his time with Isaac. Publicly and affectionately.
The pair seamlessly transitioned into a real couple, and Colton quite liked showing off his boyfriend for all to see. Especially since Isaac remained indifferent and rude to just about anyone who pestered him. Colton had never met someone so dedicated to helping people and equally annoyed by the presence of others and in no way afraid of showing that aggravation with a cutting comment.
Still, people reacted positively for the most part, which only encouraged Colton more. In fact, the only person who continued waving a flag of dismay about Colton’s queerness was Leon, who became more vigilant after Colton’s relationship with Isaac became public knowledge.
Leon’s jokes hit harder now. Sure, he’d always mocked Isaac, but seeing how the goth guy mattered to Colton, Leon made more of an effort to rag on him. It threw Colton’s focus a bit, andhis pitches kept going out of bounds until, eventually, a player managed to hit the worst foul ball off Colton’s shitty curve.
“Fuck me,” he hissed under his breath as the ball landed in the bleachers, where a handful of folks watched.
“Woooooo!” Mina shouted. “You got this, bitch!”
A few GSA members still had a habit of showing up during practices to support Colton, enjoy their lunch, and watch hot guys run around swinging their bats. Isaac and Mina were among them and often the most vocal. Since Colton’s audience had expanded months back, some other cliques started joining in to watch their favorite player practice.
“Damn, man!” Leon shouted from the sidelines, stepping out of the dugout. “Maybe you should call it. Not looking like much of a pitcher at all. Making me wonder what you and that weirdo get up to.”
Colton’s face flushed. He wanted to say something snappy, witty, mean, but he’d never been great at comebacks. Usually, Colton didn’t need them, and frankly, he didn’t like belittling people. Even people he didn’t like.
“Why are you worrying about what Colton and some other dude are doing in bed?” Tim asked.
“Huh?” Leon’s expression hardened. “I’m not! I was making a point.”
“Was the point that you’re gay or jealous?” another teammate asked.
“It was a fucking joke, you morons!” Leon sneered.
“A shitty joke,” someone else said.
Colton released a breath, exhaling almost all his nervousness. There were still players who didn’t feel the same as Leon. Nowhere close, in fact. The harder Leon pressed, the morethe team supported Colton, especially as Colton became more honest about himself. It seemed they rallied on his behalf, making it easier for him to slip into his identity and almost believe going pro was a possibility.
“Look out!” Isaac’s voice barreled through the field.
Before Colton could register the meaning, the baseball hit Leon dead in the face and sent him tumbling backward. Players rushed to help Leon, Colton among them. Not because he cared—he simply didn’t need the accusation he’d let his boyfriend assault other pitchers. Thankfully, there wasn’t any blood, but the swelling on Leon’s forehead was enough to get one of the coaches to send him to the athletic nurse.
“My bad!” Isaac shouted, a gleam in his eye when Leon scowled. “Thought I could try my hand at pitching, too.”
Mina burst into laughter, nudging Isaac.
“What?” He played ignorant, as if he could cute his way out of nearly breaking Leon’s face. “I thought it’d be easier to aim. If bench warmer over there can do it, why can’t I?”
“They should just shine a designated catcher spotlight on you, sweetheart.” Mina gestured dramatically to the overhead lights on the field, the ones currently turned off given the daytime practice.
“I guess I should leave the pitching to the professionals.” Isaac smirked in Colton’s direction, giving him the most mischievous expression ever before letting his face fall to something stern.
Colton almost snorted. Seeing Isaac’s dom look usually made Colton shudder with anticipation, but coupled with the awkward humor of the events unfolding, he couldn’t help but chuckle. Between Mina’s jabs and Isaac’s dumbfounded expression, it was hard to remain neutral. Colton couldn’t pretend to besympathetic for Leon’s sake if his life depended on it. Either of their lives. But at least he did his best not to gloat at Isaac’s actions.
Mina said something out of earshot that provoked a snarl from Isaac. He sucked his teeth, made a loud hissing sound, and shoved Mina.
“Keep it up, boyfriend. I’ll show you what a catcher you are.” Mina shoved Isaac back, cackling the entire time. “You’re about to catch these hands if you’re not careful.”
Isaac nearly keeled over at that, wheezing loudly as he clawed back the laughter billowing in his chest.
Colton half-smiled, letting Mina inadvertently emasculate Isaac while he played into the bottom twink role, strutting down one of the bleacher aisles as the coaches closed the practice to avoid any more audience participation.
Showing off Isaac was pure joy for Colton. Being honest about himself and his sexuality was exhilarating. There was something so much better about having a partner to show off than simply stating he was bisexual. He hadn’t realized how lonely he’d been until he collided with Isaac, until their relationship status became official. But as much as he liked showing off his boyfriend, he still had difficulty bragging about his preferred position.
