Page 80 of Pride High 3: Yellow

“You’ve probably noticed that she likes to drink.”

Anthony grinned. “For sure! She’s super cool.”

“It’s not cool,” Cameron said. “It sucks. Enough that I have to help her to bed most nights. And sometimes it gets really bad. Like cleaning up puke, or calling her work to make an excuse, because she’s still too drunk in the morning to drive. I’ve had to hide her keys before.”

“Jesus,” Anthony breathed. “I had no idea!”

“The thing is, she’s only like that when my dad is gone.” He could already see the confusion on his boyfriend’s face. “I know what you’re thinking. She should be relieved when he’s gone, considering how often they fight. But she loves him. More than she should. And it’s like she has to kill the pain when he’s not around, or maybe all she can think about is how screwed up their marriage is. I don’t know. But I wish I understood, because it scares me that love can become so twisted. I worry that’ll happen to us.”

“It won’t,” Anthony assured him.

“But how can we know?” Cameron croaked. “I bet my parents would have said the same thing, back when they first met. They couldn’t have imagined how messed up their relationship would become or they never would have gotten married.”

Anthony exhaled. “My oldest brother told me something once that I never forgot. He said growing up meant accepting hard truths. So maybe you’re right. We could end up like them, if we’re not careful.”

The thought alone made Cameron’s chin tremble.

No doubt having noticed this, Anthony hurried to add, “But wedohave a few advantages. We know what can happen, and that’ll help us avoid it. And we’re honest with each other. Your dad seems to be hiding something. And your mom might be too. From him. Does he know how bad she gets when he’s gone?”

Cameron shook his head. “Maybe I should tell him.”

“Maybe. But if we promise, right now, to always talk to each other about the important things, then I think we’ll be okay. People can’t yell and listen at the same time. It’s gotta be one or the other, and I know which I prefer.”

“Same here,” Cameron said, swallowing against his sorrow. “And I do promise.”

“So do I,” Anthony said.

Cameron’s grip tightened on his hand. He pulled them both onto the ground. With their backs against the trunk of the willow tree, they sat together, murmuring words of comfort and adoration to each other while watching the branches sway gently in the evening air.

— — —

Mindy walked around Diego with a critical eye that became a lot less professional when she checked out his butt, but hewasquite the hunk. She glanced around the backstage area of the school auditorium to make sure there weren’t any witnesses. Although she didn’t feel the need to hide her attraction to Diego, considering that he was gay and dating Ricky Nishikawa. He seemed to find it amusing anyway, like now, when she finished circling him and noticed his smirk. Mindy normally would have blushed, and maybe her cheeks did get a little warmer, but without any potential between them the pressure was off. Mostly.

“What do you think?” Diego asked, puffing up his chest.

“Very nice,” Mindy said before forcing herself to look at the leather jacket he was wearing instead. They were going for more of a “Beat It” vibe for the Sharks’ wardrobe, rather than the fifties style of the original production. And while everyone did look cooler, sourcing so many leather jackets had been more expensive than she’d expected. So they had asked the cast and crew of the upcoming play to bring old jackets from home.

Mindy stepped forward, yanked the lapels closer together, and tried to smooth down the jacket over Diego’s stomach, secretly delighting in getting to touch him so intimately. Even if it was through a layer of dried cowhide, which was kind of gross. She sometimes wondered if Anthony had made the right decision when becoming a vegetarian. Then again, how could she give up beef when it was so yummy? Some varieties more than others. She brushed a hand over his stomach again before giggling.

Diego cocked an eyebrow at her. “Does it look stupid?”

“Kind of. Whoever owned this must have had a big belly.”

“What’s wrong with the jacket I usually wear?”

“It’s a tight fit,” Mindy said.

“Yeah, I know,” Diego said, sounding defensive. “It was my dad’s. You don’t like it?”

“I do!” Especially the way it gripped his bulky curves. “But you won’t be able to dance well if you’re too constrained.”

“Then I won’t wear anything beneath it,” Diego said with the same naughty smirk.

“Let’s see what else we’ve got,” Mindy said, browsing the racks that formed barriers around what she liked to call the wardrobe department. Nothing caught her eye until she began glancing around and spotted an actor she had already fitted for a costume. Mindy grabbed a worn-out jacket of a similar size and ran over to him, explaining that she needed to make a quick exchange. When she returned with the leather jacket and Diego shrugged it on, she practically gasped.

“Perfect!” she cried, because it fit more like a suit jacket, a wide gap remaining open in the front that would allow her to experiment with T-shirt colors. And it showed off Diego’s body, which didn’t hurt, since the character he would play was supposed to be a real catch.

“Try dancing,” she said.