Page 29 of In the Middle of No(ah)where
As Barrett gets wrapped up with Caleb, I hand Noah my phone. "Can you put your number in? I'm not going to risk leaving again without it." After handing it back to me, I shoot him a text. "Now you have mine."
"Thanks for today. It was totally unexpected and a good surprise." He says bashfully.
"Yes, it was."
Turning back to Caleb, Noah asks, "Caleb, what do we tell Barrett and Marcus?"
"Oh, um…thanks for today. It was the best date ever!" Caleb says very excitedly and then pales, realizing what he said. "I-I-I mean day. Bestdayever." Oh, he's adorable, and Barrett is going to be smitten in no time.
While they hash out future plans and swap contact details, Noah and I spend a few more minutes in small talk. He steps up to give me a hug, and I welcome him into my arms, breathing in his clean scent.
"Do you need a ride?" Barrett offers them.
Noah shakes his head. "I drove us here."
"You two be safe getting home, then. Text me when you arrive so I know you made it safely," I tell Noah in my daddy tone. I just can't help it. I want to make sure he's safe.
"Yes, Daddy," Noah quips teasingly, but I know there is a lot of desire behind those words.
"Brat," I tease back.
Barrett and I walk the boys toward the main entrance and say our goodbyes. Watching their retreating backs, I look over and see not only the fondness on Barrett's face but also the longing. Yep, I feel ya, my friend. It's going to be a long few days until I can seemyboy again, too.
14
Noah
Unknown:hey puppy. gr8 seeing you. looking forward to Friday.
Unknown:this is Marcus btw.
The smile on my face is wide when I reread Marcus' text messages for the hundredth time, hesitating on whether I should reach out and text back. My mind is racing to find the right words because how can I possibly explain the last couple of years in just a few short text messages? The struggles. The setbacks. The self-inflicted wounds. How am I going to explain any of it without him seeing me as something totally different or broken? What if I'm too much for him? Too much drama. Too much baggage to deal with.
Standing in front of my closet with a towel wrapped around my waist, there's a knock at my door before it opens. Carlos. We have very few boundaries between us. Next to Caleb, Carlos has become my second best friend. And since both of our rooms lock, if I really wanted to keep him out, I'd lock the door.
Looking around my room quickly, "Have you seen my–" he cuts off when his gaze lands on my arm. I've never tried hiding the scars from him, but I've never had them fully on display, either. When my shirt sleeve slid up once, he noticed the scars on my wrist, which led to a whole night of drinking and verbal diarrhea. He's been sweet to check in with me daily to make sure my mental health is in check. This is the first time he's seen the full length of my arm covered in mental health battle wounds.
I clear my throat.
"Sorry, man. I've just never…you know…I didn't…" He nods in the direction of my arm. The look of empathy smeared across his tanned face.
"You didn't realize it was this bad?" I finish for him.
"Yeah."
"It's okay. What's up?" I ask, trying to divert the conversation away from my scars.
"Have you seen my controller? The clear one that lights up."
"Last I saw, you had it plugged in on the TV stand, charging."
"I looked," he says, defeated.
"Have you tried that messy bedroom of yours?" I tease. Mine's not much better.
"Daddy made me clean it before we had sex last night. No controller." He says matter-of-factly.
"Check behind the TV stand. Maybe it got bumped and fell back there among all the wires." I swear, Carlos has every sound system and gadget known to man plugged in there. I'm surprised the house hasn't caught fire. I'm curious if his daddy would help him sort that mess out so it's less of a fire hazard.
