Page 22 of It's Just You

“He’s not going to do that, Finn.” Mom’s voice didn’t sound convincing. She knew as well as I did that he would’ve insisted trying to be more like everyone else would’ve worked eventually.

“Mom, can we please stop pretending he’s just going to accept me the way I am one day? I know you guys love me, I really do, but this is just something we’ll always disagree about.” I ran a hand through my hair, suddenly even more exhausted. I hated it so much, the fact that they couldn’t understand me or accept me. I just wanted to be me. Was that so hard to understand?

“Just reconsider, Finn. It’s just one dinner, and the parents will be there too. No one will make a fuss.” She looked at me like I hadn’t just told her a lot about my struggles all through school here. Damn it.

I ground my teeth, willing myself to stay calm.

“Here’s your short, direct answer, Mom. No way. Not even if you try to drag me yelling and screaming. Not if you threaten, blackmail, or try to bribe me into it. You might think it wasn’t that bad, but it was. It was worse. I, for my part, have no desire to see any of those idiots again. So have fun at the dinner, but without me.” With those words, I closed my eyes, suddenly tired. I didn’t have the energy to deal with her anymore. She wouldn’t understand, no matter how hard I’d tried to explain how badly I’d been hurt by their bullying.

I’d had to live with the bullying and its aftermath.

I also got to decide who I spent my time with.

“I’m going to leave now. If you decide you want to get together with Sam and his parents, I’d be all for that, but I’m not going to this other dinner. Talk to you later, okay?” Rude? Probably. But I was beyond caring.

Mom looked hurt all over again, but she didn’t comment. Maybe she’d realized she’d overstepped her boundaries. Either way, I left before she could respond, intent on going to the only place I felt safe: Sam’s.

It was strange, how we hadn’t seen each other in ages, yet I felt more at ease there than at my parents’ place. It was probably because he accepted me so easily, and his parents never blinked twice when they looked at me.

And, of course, now there was Kane.

It wasn’t until I got to Sam’s house that I realized I probably should’ve called ahead, especially since I didn’t see his car in the driveway. But Kane’s motorcycle was there, and he might be able to tell me where to find Sam. Or I could ogle his bike some more, picturing him on it.

A part of me didn’t like him driving it at all, mostly because those things could be dangerous as hell. On the other hand, though, it was sexy. Men on bikes just had some air about them I couldn’t describe… and with Kane, it was the combination. He seemed so vulnerable, in the rare moments he’d let me see it, then he was the sort of strong, independent man I liked — maybe more than I was supposed to.

“Hey,” Kane said from the front door, waving at me before I even had the chance to knock. “Sam’s not here, if you’re looking for him. He offered to do some grocery shopping for Mom.”

I raised my hand to greet him, a smile appearing on my lips. “Why do I have the feeling he’s just going to buy lots of sweets to take back to the dorms?”

Kane’s smile became strained for a moment, then it turned into something that felt a little more genuine as he stepped closer. “Yeah, most likely. But at least he’s trying to do something useful.”

“Hey, I’m sure he’s not that bad.” I felt the need to defend Sam, though from everything I’d seen, he really was lazy when he was at home.

“No, he’s not that bad. He’s worse. Typical student.” But Kane chuckled, taking the sting out of his words.

“No jokes about students. You’ll wound my pride too.”

“Your pride?” He laughed again. “You wave the pride flag so much, there’s no hurting your self-esteem, is there?” If only he knew. “I’m still surprised you aren’t throwing glitter around.” He was now standing next to me, towering over me.

Too close, though. Way too close for me to come up with something witty, something about glitter or being out and proud. But damn, I couldn’t think at all when he looked at me like that.

“No pride flag? Or just no glitter?” Kane teased.

I cleared my throat, trying to get my thoughts in order. “I can glitter-bomb you, you know. Just be warned, it’s a crazy mess to get out.”

“To get out of what?” he asked.

“More like, to get out of where, and the answer is everywhere. No matter what you do, you’ll find it forever.”

“I think I’ll pass on the glitter then.” Kane’s strong fingers drifted absently over his bike, tracing the leather of the seat possessively.

“Uh-uh. I don’t think you can pass on that. It’s not like you’d get a choice.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

I grinned, showing all my teeth. “I wouldn’t bet on it.”

“Any way to bribe you into not doing that?” he asked, though I could still hear the smile in his voice. He didn’t believe I’d really do it.

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