Page 1 of Structure of Love

1

Gage

It was Gym Day, therefore I was at said gym promptly so I wouldn’t keep Zar waiting. We were accountability buddies, but it was also a nice way to catch up with him. Sometimes, getting Zar one-on-one was more difficult than finding a missing sock, especially after he and Asher started dating.

Zar was already on the mats on the left side, stretching, so I joined him with nothing more than a wave. The second I started stretching my quads, my knees protested. Loudly. Sounded like Rice Krispies in a bowl of milk.

“My joints need to stop betraying me like this.”

“You have to learn how to listen to your body,” Zar intoned like some wise monk.

“Oh, we’re not on speaking terms.”

“You’ve swallowed too many kids, that’s why everything you say sounds childish.”

I stuck my tongue out at Zar. “Says the man who’s no longer straight. How are you and Asher doing, anyway?”

“Fabulous. Despite the drama.”

About a month and a half ago, Zar and Asher had publicly come out to their families, with mixed results. Zar’s family had been immediately delighted, embracing Asher with joy. Asher’s family was extremely homophobic—with the exception of his eldest brother—and they’d accused Asher of “corrupting Zar,” which hadn’t gone down well.

The whole thing had been posted on social media, thanks to Zar’s brother filming the event, and the backlash had been intense. Neither of Asher’s parents were willing to show their faces right now because people—random strangers, mind you—would stop and chew them out for being so homophobic.

Personally, this outcome delighted me, but I was also a petty person. My stripper name would be Petty Betty.

I would never admit this out loud, not even with the proper application of lye and thumb screws, but watching Asher and Zar be cute together made me feel jealous as hell. I didn’t want either of them—I was not at all attracted to my childhood best friends—but watching them be so happy together made me fervently wish I had someone, too.

Did I want a boyfriend badly enough to wade into the dating pool?

Eh, debatable.

I could neither confirm nor deny I’d been halfway through creating an online dating profile last night before I’d thought better of it.

Zar paused in his stretching, one leg straight out, his hand casually on his foot like that didn’t hurt or anything. His dark brown eyes rested on me, his expression thoughtful, and I was a little scared to ask what he plotted over there.

“You. No scheming.”

“Gage, I know you’re super against blind dates—”

“I am, so do not suggest one.”

“But have you considered maybe online dating?”

I grimaced. “I actually did try once a year ago, briefly.”

“How briefly?”

“Lasted a whole month. The internet is scary. Dating online somehow ups the scariness to horror show levels.”

“Ah. Wait, is that where the two-pump chump came from?”

“Good guess. It’s almost like you’re a cop or something, putting the pieces together.”

He ignored my sarcastic dig. “I thought you knew your worth better than that. It’s why that guy was such a surprise.”

I made a face at him, peeved at the reminder of that particular idiot. “I do know my worth. It’s just sometimes I go on sale.”

Zar snorted a laugh, switching legs to stretch the other way. “Is that what happened?”