Page 27 of Anchor Grey
“Dude, he’s taken on a couple of new bands. He’s busy, and I’m sure he’s sick of all of us by now,” Mateo said.
“You could be right,” I said.
“I’ll email him and set up a meeting with all of us when we get back. But for now, let’s have a few days to just catch up and not worry about band shit,” Johnny said.
“So, what games do you have here?” Mateo asked. “And not fucking Monopoly.”
“Funny you should ask. Look in that cabinet, there’re a lot of them,” I said and showed him which cabinet. “What’s wrong with Monopoly?”
“It takes forever and no one ever finishes it,” he said as he started taking boxes of games out.
“We finished it the other day,” I said and Johnny smirked at me.
“How long did it take?” he asked.
“Oh my god, forever,” I said. “But it was worth it.”
“If you say so. Oh, look, Boggle,” Mateo said and shook the box. “Jeremy, we gotta play.”
“You have no idea what you’ve just released on us,” Jeremy said.
“Hey, Boggle’s my jam,” Mateo said and plopped down so close to Jeremy he almost sat on him.
“So, you two?” Johnny said and pointed back and forth at the two of them. “I need a little more detail.”
“I’ve been interested forever,” Mateo said. “It took him a while to catch up.”
“Number one, I didn’t think I was into dudes, but every time he’d give me this look . . . I can’t explain it, but it was like I could feel his hands on me.” He looked at Mateo then and the heat and affection were in his eyes whether he realized it or not.
“Whoa,” Johnny said.
“I know! That’s what I said too. He got into my head, and then he got into my heart,” Jeremy said.
“Are you happy?” I asked and looked at both of them.
“Happier than I’ve ever been. It’s like I was chasing the wrong person all this time and finally found the right one,” Jeremy said.
“He makes me happy,” Mateo said. “Even if he did make me work at his parents’.”
“Hey, you said you liked it.”
“I did, but I would have been happier if it was one day instead of five.”
“I’ll keep that in mind next time,” Jeremy said and kissed the side of his head. “He really was a big help for someone who has never held a hammer before. I’m going to get my contractor’s license.”
“What? I had no clue you liked building shit,” I said.
“Well, not really building, more like fixing. But I want to get my license so I can learn a little about everything. My grandfather owned his own business and used to take me with him until I got older and didn’t want to go anymore. But I learned a lot. What about you two?”
“I think I want to go into management,” Johnny said, and I wasn’t surprised at all. He’d already been doing everything for the band and knew exactly what needed to be done.
“You’re brave,” Mateo said. “Or stupid.”
“Probably stupid,” Johnny said and smiled so bright I knew it was the right choice for him.
“What about you, Mateo?” Johnny asked.
“I hate to admit this, but I want to work with Jeremy. I really did like the work,” he said and ducked away from Jeremy who ended up pulling him close for a hug.
