Page 75 of Unloved

Abby is waiting for me as I walk toward the library entrance, her phone in hand. I bring my cell phone to my face, knowing she’s about to send me a text in three…two…one.

Really, Lennox, you got yourself two boyfriends?

It’s so unbecoming of you to be so greedy.

What about the rest of us?

After the first time we met, Abby and I became inseparable. She reminds me of Clem with her feisty attitude, except she has a softness about her that makes me feel like the older sibling this time around.

I didn’t know you were in the market for two boyfriends. The other day you could barely handle that guy at the coffee shop flirting with you.

Please. Be for real. I can’t exchange texts with a guy who doesn’t use full sentences and punctuation. Don’t come at me with acronyms, because nine out of ten times I’m going to get them wrong, on purpose, and then we’re all screwed.

K

You’re a dick.

No, I have a dick.

Same-same if you ask me.

We’re making our way through the automatic doors, when another text comes through.

So, I was thinking. Do you want to come see this indie band with me thisweekend?

Sorry, I told you I was taken, but thank you.

*eye roll emoji*

Please scroll up to see the aforementioned insult.

You can bring them.

Abby has been slowly becoming my go-to person whenever I have any questions, concerns, or doubts; she walks and talks me through it all. The best thing about our friendship is that being deaf is the least interesting thing about the both of us.

She’s currently studying to get her bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity, and to be honest, it’s no surprise the guy from the coffee shop didn’t meet her standards. I’m surprised she can even handle having a conversation with me; she’s out of everyone’s league.

Text me the details. And I’ll let you know if we can make it.

The support group we attend is for college students who are Hard of Hearing and/or Deaf people. Despite no longer being enrolled in college, my deferment and doctor’s diagnosis were used as proof that I could use the school’s service till my eventual graduation.

Besides meeting Abby, the group is currently allowing me to explore all the ways UCLA makes their classes, content, and campus accessible to deaf students.

It continues to blow my mind just how little time I spent thinking about anything outside my world. I thought being a foster kid made me less privileged and more understanding, because I somehow knew what struggle really meant. But between my recent diagnosis and life with Lennox and Samuel, my perception of the world has been changing.

Some for the worse.

Some for the better.

Along with the support group, I’ve finally enrolled in a face-to-face sign language class, and so have Samuel, Frankie, Arlo, Clem, and Remy. It’s a little bit ridiculous that we all insisted on going to the same class, and all together, but they’re being supportive, and I’d be lying if I said I don’t love it.

After class we usually all spend time annoying the shit out of Rhys by practicing our signs. We all know a lot of signs but lack the speed to have a back-and-forth conversation. But with Rhys we practice incorrectly, on purpose. Just so he can show us the right way.

One of my favorite things to do is see him and Samuel interact with my family. It brings me a sense of contentment I didn’t realize I’ve spent my whole life searching for.

I know I’m only twenty-two, but the one thing foster care did teach me was the difference between a house and a home. I’ve lived in a lot of houses.

Came and went. Hated and loved.

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