Page 65 of Half Notes and Highlights
“I’m OK,” Wolf whispered, patting Ethan’s back.
Emotions coursed through Ethan as he broke the hug and looked into the pain in his friend’s eyes. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah.” Wolf’s voice cracked. “I’m fine. I got stuff to do. I’ll see you later.”
Reluctantly, Ethan headed toward the door. Looking back at Wolf, the poor guy looked like he just lost his best friend. He didn’t, and Ethan almost ran back to give Wolf another hug and tell him so, but he returned to his RV because Wolf obviously wanted to be alone.
Five minutes must have gone by while Ethan stared at the wall in his RV and replayed, not just the conversation he and Wolf just had, but the last few months. He saw things from Wolf’s side, and he needed to tell Wolf that he understood. He just kept apologizing to the guy, but he never told him that he understood, and he needed to. He knew he should probably let things cool down and wait for emotions to settle before he approached Wolf again, but he couldn’t get the forlorn look on Wolf’s face out of his head and headed back to talk to his friend.
But Wolf’s RV was locked, and he didn’t open the door, despite Ethan calling his name loudly and begging him to let him in.
“He went to Mr. Young’s RV,” a security guard offered.
It made sense, and Ethan was happy that Wolf sought out Harris to talk to about his feelings. The guy was obviously a mess, and it was a good thing that Wolf wanted to open up instead of suppressing his emotions all the time.
As Ethan walked toward Harris’ RV, he paused to look back at Tyler’s trailer. The bright pink structure shown in the bland desert like a bright flower, exactly like Tyler. A smile warmed his face and love filled him to his core at the mere thought of Tyler and his colorful personality, soft heart, and feisty attitude.
As he continued toward Harris’ RV, the happiness that had him soaring only seconds ago took a nosedive. Behind him, the love of his life was making people beautiful, and he imagined Tyler cutting someone’s hair while he talked with animation and entertained his client with his antics. In front of him, a guy who meant the world to him was hurting because he felt rejected, so he quickened his pace.
With his fist lifted ready to knock on the door to Harris’ RV, Ethan stopped to listen to the voices coming from inside.
“I still can’t believe it’s over,” Wolf said, his voice sad and soft. “I always thought he’d come around and realize I was the one. We’d put the bullshit aside and it’d just be me and him.”
“I’m sorry,” Harris replied, sympathetically. “You know I love Ethan like a brother, but you’ve wasted enough time waiting for him. There’s someone out there who’s going to love you completely.”
“I hope so. I just always thought it would be Ethan, even if I had to share him.”
“That’s not right,” Harris replied. “You shouldn’t be with someone who doesn’t feel the same way about you. Don’t settle for anything less than the whole package because that’s what you deserve.”
There was a pause, then Wolf said, “I know. I just keep thinking that maybe if I told him I was in love with him years ago, things could have been different. He could have realized that he was in love with me too. I was just so scared that it would have backfired and ruin our friendship.” Wolf let out a long sigh. “It’s too late now. I lost him.”
“I know it hurts right now, but it’ll get better,” Harris said. “It’s time to move on, bruh.”
Ethan couldn’t listen anymore and backed away from the RV, tripping over a rock in the sand. He started running, tearsstinging his eyes. As soon as he got to his RV, he fell onto the couch and sobbed into his hands.
He suspected that Wolf’s feelings had deepened recently, but he never imagined that Wolf had been in love with him all these years. He had no fucking idea. No fucking clue. Now the bitter rivalry and hostility toward Tyler made more sense. How were they supposed to move forward? He didn’t think Wolf would ever get over this, and it scared him because if those two didn’t figure it out, he knew he’d end up losing one of them, and he wasn’t prepared for that.
***
Tyler returned to the RV around three, this morning’s fiasco completely forgotten. The guy bounced back from anything and everything with a smile on his face and pep in his step. But Ethan couldn’t forget and move on so easily. It was fucked up.
Tyler greeted Ethan with an exaggerated kiss and proceeded to go on about his day. With his hands moving wildly through the air, he was totally enamored by some of the guys in the other bands he met today. He suddenly stopped talking and pushed out his lower lip. “Why so sad? Are you still upset about Chickengate 2024? Because I’m over it. My trailer got a beautiful wash, and it looks shinier than ever, so whoever thought they were doing me harm has another thing coming. Their plan backfired.”
The corners of Ethan’s lips spread across his face, and he stared at Tyler with all the love in his heart. “How do you do that? Forgive and forget so easily.”
Tyler shook his head and his eyes grew fiery. “Wait a minute.” He held up an irate index finger. “I didn’t say anything about forgetting about what happened. I never forget. I haven’t forgiven whoever did it either. I’m just not wasting my time onit because they’re not worth it.” He sauntered over and wrapped his arms around Ethan’s neck. “Why are you still thinking about it?”
Ethan struggled to answer. He wanted to tell Tyler to go easy on Wolf and debated on whether or not to reassure him that Wolf wasn’t responsible for egging his trailer, but ultimately decided not to mention either. He couldn’t take sides in this weird triangle. Whatever happened needed to play out on its own. Whatever that may be. “I can’t help it. It was fucked up.”
“Yes. It was. But that was this morning.” Tyler nodded toward the window. “Let’s get something to eat. I caught some amazing smells on the short walk from my trailer.”
“Do you want me to get Zoe to grab us a couple of plates?”
“No. I want to walk around the festival again. I’m a people person. I don’t want to hide out in the RV.”
“OK. I can wear my disguise again. Can you wear something to camouflage your identity too? I’m afraid people will figure out who we are. People know you’re here.”
Tyler nodded. “I get it. If someone recognized me, they’d figure out you’re the one standing next to me.” He tapped his index finger against his chin and looked up to the ceiling while his eyes moved back and forth, then they suddenly widened. “I have an idea. Bring an extra set of clothes. This is gonna be fun!”
