Page 71 of His Surrender
Having him cast me aside would be devastating.
The late-night conversations had lessened, and when I did see him, it was for sex and then he’d leave. We hadn’t spent the night together again either. The intimacy I craved was nowhere to be found, with the exception of the occasional kiss when he was buried deep in my ass. It was like we were going backward.
He’d spent the previous weekend with his brother for Ivan’s birthday, and he hadn’t texted or called me once. I had sent a text asking if he ever found a good birthday gift, and it was marked asread,but I never got a reply.
I sat at school that following Wednesday, trying not to overthink it. It would only stress me out. So, I forced myself to think of positive things. Like my students.
They were progressing in their music and had the Disney melody down very well. Foster’s confidence was growing. When he practiced his solo in front of the class, he still shook a little with nerves, but after taking a few deep breaths, he relaxed and actually seemed to have fun while playing in front of a small audience.
The spring concert was in mid-April, so we still had about a month left to practice.
“Any fun plans for spring break?” Dillon asked me that afternoon before class started. It was the last week before the break, and the students seemed more energetic and antsy for the next two days to pass so they could have a week out of school.
“Nope,” I answered, positioning the music stand in front of the chairs. “What about you?”
“We’re gonna go to Colorado to visit some family,” he said, before walking toward the back room to get his tuba. He sat down in his assigned seat, resting the instrument between his legs. “You should do something, Mr. Barnett. Life is best when improvised. Like the quote you wrote on the board.” He pointed to it. “Be wild and go swim with sharks or something.”
I grinned. “That’d for sure be memorable.”
“My dad and I are gonna go camping,” Foster said, sliding off his backpack before sitting.
“Where at?” Dillon asked.
“A place called Green Leaf State Park,” Foster answered with a smile. “We used to camp a lot when I was younger, but we haven’t in a while. I’m excited.”
As they continued talking, I mulled over Dillon’s words. No, I wouldn’t be swimming with sharks… but whyshouldn’tI do something for spring break? At the rate things were going with Jay, I doubted I’d see him much. And if I did, it would just be for a quick fuck, and then he’d leave again.
When I got home that afternoon, I preheated the oven and set out a bag of frozen chicken strips. Unlike Jay, I hated cooking. Heating things up was about the most I did. Once sticking the pan into the oven, I sat at my kitchen table and opened up my laptop to browse possible vacation spots.
Then the answer hit me.
New Orleans.
It had always been a dream of mine to go there. I wanted to walk through Jackson Square and hear the passion of the street musicians as they played. I wanted to experience the culture. The atmosphere. The magic. The Big Easy was the place to be.
Over the years, I’d saved up a small sum of money—not a whole lot, but enough to spend at least a few days in New Orleans at a nice hotel and do some sightseeing. I very rarely did anything extravagant for myself, and I always felt guilty when I did.
I don’t know if I should.
The oven beeped, and I set the pan on top of the stove. I then snatched my phone off the counter as it rang.
“Hello?”
“Hey, you.”
Jay’s voice never failed to send my heart racing.
“Hey,” I responded, piling chicken strips onto a plate.
“Can I come over tonight?” Jay asked.
Normally, I would’ve said yes with no hesitation. But my feelings were hurt. Jay had completely shut down on me, treating me as nothing but a hole for him to stick his cock in.
“Depends.” I grabbed the ketchup from the fridge and carried my plate to the table.
“On what?”
“Depends if you’re going to come over, fuck me, and leave. That’s getting really old, Jay.” I sat down and tore off the end of a strip so it could cool. They were still sizzling.
