Page 50 of Escape Velocity
Never again will he go to a frat party, especially with Callum present.
Tonight, he had the guts, he spilled them, then puked them out.
Just like the lies he tells every day about his feelings for Callum and his academic aspirations, the truth will come out sooner or later.
He just wishes it hadn’t ended up like this.
14
SEVEN YEARS AGO
“Callum,stop! You’re going to make me fall into the river!”
“Hold on tight!”
Mason giggles as glee carries him into the upswing. Flecks of light dance through the trees as he looks up at the sky. It’s a kaleidoscope of red, orange, and brown.
The air is crisp, and the scent of fallen leaves invades his nostrils.
Callum’s hands are warm and supportive on his back as he catches the upswing, his chest lifting as he rises with the swing into the sky.
Rushing water from the nearby creek and the chirps of chickadees and cardinals keep the two boys company in a small part of the woods behind Callum’s house.
“You’re the king of the forest!” Callum bellows gleefully as he watches Mason fly from down below.
Happiness surges through Mason’s chest as he gazes down at Callum, who stares up at him like he’s a magical being.
Mason keeps swinging up and down, mesmerized bythe amber glow of the setting sun webbing through the branches of the trees.
He wonders if they can just stay here forever and make their own rules. Where his parents don’t force him to go to school and where Mason’s dad doesn’t yell at him all the time. Where they can build a fortress of bricks and stones and they can rule together as two kings. Their own kingdom.
Mason screams as he rushes through the air, a bellow of pure glee and happiness, as he pictures that future for both of them.
Where the birds always sing and the brook always babbles.
Mason slows down on the swing and his chest lifts as he lets himself go, his body flying and landing in the soft caress of a pile of leaves that Callum and he had collected over the past hour.
Mason giggles and Callum runs over to him, jumping into the pile of leaves with him.
“That was so fun!” Mason cries, giggling as he looks at Callum.
Callum beams at him. “My turn now!”
“You’re too heavy to push,” Mason retorts, a playful smirk on his face.
Callum gasps and throws a fistful of leaves at Mason. “Hey!”
Mason giggles and throws his own fistful at Callum.
They both keep pushing each other around and throwing leaves at each other.
This is Mason’s favorite time of year. He loves playing in the leaves and the rush of autumn wind that passes through him.
It reminds him of fall days where he would help Callumand his mom rake leaves and then she would bake them apple crisp as a reward, and they would carve pumpkins after.
They stop play-fighting and Callum gets on the swing now.
Mason gives Callum one big push, loving the feeling of the warmth of Callum’s back on his hands and looking at the back of his head and how his black hair reminds him of a black cat’s fur.
