Addicted [BoyxBoy]

One Last Breath

My mom was furiously yelling at me the moment I stepped into the door. I could barely react before she let loose a stream of angry words that, even in person, didn't make sense to me. Still, I understood.

My mother knew absolutely nothing about the crash. Once I managed to tell her, she immediately calmed down. Then I told her that I didn't want to be alone after that, so I went to a friend's house (leaving out the details of our kissing).

She apologized and gave me a huge hug before going back to her room--probably to sleep.

In less than an hour, I got a call from a random number.

"Hello?"

"Hi, is this Caleb?" a partly familiar male voice asked.

"Yes," I responded reluctantly. Who was calling me?

The man answered my question when he said, "Hi, this is George! We met last night at the gallery."

I took an internal breath of relief. "Hey, how are you?"

"I'm pulling through. . . trying to, anyway," he said slowly,"I have to stay strong for Nathaniel."

I assumed that Nathaniel was the son he had mentioned, and since both of his parents were gone, George most likely had custody.

"I understand," I said softly, offering as much comfort as I could over the phone.

"It's just. . . hard. But we'll make it."

I could tell his big smile wasn't there at that moment, and I understood why.

"Anyway, I called to invite you to the funeral on Saturday, I'm sure he'd want you there."

"Thanks, I would love to be there," I said while I grabbed a pen and paper from my desk, "Where is it?"

*****

I sat there, waiting anxiously for Bobby. Why was I nervous?

It wasn't like it was a blind date. We knew each other. For three years.

Yet I couldn't help but tap my foot and look around anxiously.

He had called me the previous night and offered to get some coffee with me, and I was so excited at the time.

Now it just felt weird.

I waited, looking around the Grove for him, but within the crowd, I didn't see him. I continued to tap my foot and took a deep breath. I didn't understand why I was so nervous.

Will it be weird? We know each other. What's the point of a date?

I stared off into the distance, lost in my internal soliloquy.

I can't believe he actually asked me on a date. This is all really freaky. Dating Bobby was really freaky. How much change can I handle?

"Waiting for someone?" a familiar voice spoke from the seat across from me. Sure enough, it was Bobby, with a goofy grin plastered on his face.

I sighed and smiled at him. "No, just sitting here contemplating the meaning of life."

"Ah," he nodded, "and what have you discovered?"

"The meaning of life is. . . shredded cheese."

He laughed rather loud and said, "Good to know."

I chuckled awkwardly, just looking at him. I didn't know what to say, so I didn't say anything.

And neither did he.

We both stayed silent.

And so the awkwardness grows.