Page 33

Jesse

It was raining when Jesse got home in the evening.

A heavy spring rain, quite unusual for end of May, soaking him to the bones as he hurried home from the bus stop.

He should have checked the weather forecast that morning.

But he hadn’t, so he’d been caught off guard, without his raincoat, boots, or an umbrella.

If this had happened about six weeks ago, when he was still halfway through his recovery period after his heart issues, he might’ve been in trouble.

But now, after the follow-up appointment he’d just had, he didn’t have to worry about it.

A clean bill of health. The doctors hadn’t told Jesse anything he didn’t already know, but it was nice to get it all in writing.

He’d been extremely lucky to recover as well as he had, with only a very slight stinging every now and then, but his young age and relatively healthy lifestyle—no smoking or drinking, and not as much junk food as other people his age—made it easier for him to bounce back, and now he was cleared for ‘business as usual.’

He couldn’t wait to tell Jamie.

When he got into the apartment though, he found it dark and empty. That was strange… Well, maybe Jamie’s dance practice just ran a little late today. There wasn’t any need to be worried.

Jesse started for the bedroom to change out of his wet clothes, but right as he reached the door, he heard footsteps hurrying up the stoop behind him.

The front door was pushed open again, and Jamie came in, casting Jesse a smile.

“I saw you go inside right as I stepped onto the parking lot,” he said.

“I ran to catch up, but I wasn’t fast enough. ”

Jesse laughed. “You don’t even seem out of breath.”

“That’s because I’m in shape. ”

“A very beautiful shape, that is.” Jesse stepped closer, chuckling and leaning in for a quick kiss hello.

Jamie kissed him back, but then pulled away with a light laugh of his own, reaching up to rub a few droplets of water off his face. “Your hair is dripping on me!”

“Well, I just got inside,” Jesse said, before noticing that Jamie’s white hair—which fell to his shoulders, much longer than Jesse’s short haircut—was dry as a bone, even though his clothes were soaked.

“Lucky you, in that hoodie,” he indicated Jamie’s jacket.

“I was in my jean jacket, so my hair’s soaked. ”

“Right, uh, yeah,” Jamie said, blinking for a moment as if he was confused about something.

But before Jesse could ask, Jamie offered another smile.

“I have good news! My group is entering another competition! And this one’s a big deal!

It’s in Reno, and we had to film an audition tape to send it in and see if we qualify.

We don’t know if we’ll be accepted, but everyone’s pretty confident we will.

We’re basically just waiting to hear back! ”

“Wow! Jamie, that’s great! I’m sure you’ll be accepted—and I’m sure you’ll win, too!

” Jesse pulled him into a tight and overjoyed (and pretty wet) hug, and Jamie giggled in his arms. It was so great to see him like this again.

It had only been a month now since he’d started working with Dr. Alevera—so, only four sessions—but he’d already improved so much.

At least mentally. His memories had not returned, and he still had a lot of nightmares, but they weren’t as intense anymore, and when he did wake up from a bad dream, the breathing techniques Dr. Alevera had showed him seemed to help him a great deal.

Jesse was honestly a bit surprised. He’d known that some breathing exercises or other little physical rituals could help relieve anxiety, but he hadn’t expected it to be this effective.

It was like Dr. Alevera knew exactly what Jamie needed in order to feel better and get results right away. No wonder she came highly recommended. And now that his mental health was improving, it was up to Jesse to make sure he stayed physically well, too .

“I think you should get out of those wet clothes,” he suggested to Jamie, releasing him from the hug. “You don’t want to get sick before a big dance comp.”

“True, but you should change, too. You’re the one who was in the hospital only a few weeks ago.”

“Two months.” Jesse corrected a little stubbornly.

“Seven weeks since you were released,” Jamie argued back. “That’s not a full two months yet. And it’s definitely not enough time to be careless.”

Jesse couldn’t argue with that—especially when he suddenly had to sneeze. Jamie glanced at him in concern, something that had been happening a lot less lately.

“I’m fine,” Jesse reassured him. “It’s just a sneeze. I think I’ll grab a hot shower real quick, before I get changed. I was running late for work this morning, so I didn’t get a chance to wash my hair.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Jesse headed into the bathroom—and frowned as Jamie followed.

“Uh, what’s up?” Jesse asked.

“Nothing,” Jamie said casually. “I just thought I’d shower, too. I’m sweaty from dance practice, after all.”

Um…

Together? He meant that he was going to shower with Jesse?

At the same time?

Did he have any idea how hard it would be to follow his no-sex-rule if he did that?!

But Jesse didn’t really have it in him to say no.

He would just… be careful. Keep his eyes upward, try to ignore what was happening, and just get in and out quick, to make sure he didn’t get too hot and bothered.

Still, when they got out of their clothes and the water was running and Jamie actually followed through on his plan and climbed into the tub right next to Jesse, it was hard to ignore the wild beating in his heart.

He would forever be envious of Jamie’s ability to just…

do things, without feeling shy or nervous or uncomfortable.

Almost like he was completely oblivious to the fact that it might not be as ‘ casual’ for everybody else.

“How did your appointment with the doctor go?” Jamie asked, as he rubbed soap over his chest like this was the most normal thing in the world.

“Oh yeah, I forgot to say when you came in. He says I’m fine.”

“Really? Nothing wrong anymore at all?”

“That’s right.” Jesse took the shampoo, squirting some into his hand and then closing his eyes as he started to lather it into his hair.

That helped, a little. He was still keenly aware of Jamie’s close proximity, but now he didn’t have to see anything he couldn’t touch.

“I’ve got a total clean bill of health,” he said.

“I’m just as well now as I was two months ago.

A full two months ago. And since you’re also getting better, how about we go somewhere to celebrate? ”

“C-celebrate?”

“Yeah,” Jesse took the hand shower from its mount, and started rinsing the suds out of his hair. “Is there somewhere you’d like to go?”

Jamie hesitated for a moment. “Um… I… I don’t know,” he mumbled, but then his tone shifted to pure excitement. “Can we go to the pool again?”

Jesse couldn’t help but chuckle. “Sure. Or maybe, if you liked the pool, we could do something even better.” He finished with his hair and then risked opening his eyes again, though careful only to look into Jamie’s face.

“Better?” Jamie repeated. “Like what?”

“Like a waterpark. There’s one in Reno, and now that it’s a lot warmer, it should be open.”

“What kind of things do you do there?” A glint of curiosity and eagerness lightened Jamie’s eyes.

Jesse had to let out another chuckle. Jamie was just too cute. “It’s basically like a pool, except with water slides. And some waterparks also have lazy rivers or wave pools, too.”

Jamie’s eyes grew even wider. “That sounds amazing! But… isn’t that quite expensive then? ”

”Not really, especially if we pack our own food and drinks,” Jesse replied. “You know what? We could go tomorrow if you’re up for it.” The plan fit perfectly with their schedules; no classes the next day, and Jamie had the day off as well. “We only need to be back before my night shift starts.”

Jamie stared at Jesse, clearly at a loss for words. But the eager excitement in his eyes spoke volumes. To snap him out of his daze, Jesse playfully pointed the hand shower at him, sending a stream of warm water his way. Jamie let out a surprised shriek—and they both burst into laughter.

After some moments, Jamie got back to washing himself, then paused, glancing back up at Jesse with another bright smile. “Can we invite Austin?”

Jesse tensed at the unexpected question. A feeling he knew all too well pierced through him; though it was matched equally by surprise.

Jealousy.

It felt strange to be jealous of Austin, and he knew for certain that Jamie didn’t feel anything for him.

It was a good thing that they were becoming such close friends, and Jesse wouldn’t have it any other way.

But at the same time… he’d sort of hoped that they could go somewhere together, just the two of them, and having Jamie want Austin to come meant it definitely wasn’t going to be any sort of date.

He knew he was being unreasonable and selfish, though, and that was the last thing he wanted. So he banished the brief impulse from his mind and smiled, handing the shower head over to Jamie. “Sure, that sounds fun.”

Jamie started rinsing himself off, but frowned in return. “You made a face. You don’t like that idea.”

“What? No,” Jesse protested. Damn it, he really had to control his facial expressions more. “No, I like it a lot. I guess I just… got a little jealous, that’s all. ”

“Jealous?” Jamie repeated, his frown deepening.

It had been a while since his ‘asking questions about common concepts’ phase.

But, as long as Jamie didn’t have his memories back, there would likely always be a few gaps, Jesse supposed, and ‘jealousy’ wasn’t something they’d ever had to deal with before—but god, why did Jesse have to explain that in the shower?