Anything Could Happen (11 page)

Impossible.

Then, to his surprise, he found himself reading the entire play….

A few hours and a restless nap later, there was another knock on the door. “Should I shove your dinner under the door?” came a quiet voice.

Austin went to the door, still confused over the cacophony of thoughts and voices going on in his head. He opened it to find his uncle standing there, holding a plate. Chicken-fried steak and mashed potatoes and gravy. It smelled wonderful. But at the same time, his stomach clenched. Could he eat?

“Thanks, Uncle Bodie.” He took the plate, and then, feeling stupid, followed the man back to the dining room table. He sat and picked at his food.

After a while his uncle broke the silence. “You gonna tell me what’s wrong?”

Austin sighed. “That’s what is so dumb. I can’t even pin it down.”

“Start anywhere. The audition didn’t go well?”

Austin slumped. “It was a disaster, Uncle Bodie. You wouldn’t believe the script! It’s all about these men who have sex in bathrooms. Guy wanted me to play the part of this beautiful kid who men just paw all over. There is, like, simulated sex and everything. Right on stage.”

Uncle Bodie nodded. “I guess that isn’t the kind of thing Wilda was expecting to see you in….”

“No,” Austin said, horrified. “Grams would die!”

They ate for a while, neither saying anything.

“I guess I was just expecting that when Guy said the play was controversial, it was going to be more like
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolff
than
Men Addicted to Blowjobs in Public
.”

“And that’s all there is to it?” Uncle Bodie asked. “That’s all the play is about? Guy is an impressive young man. I wouldn’t expect him to be interested in just shocking an audience. Teaching them, maybe. Showing them a side of the world they’d never seen, even. But porn?” He shrugged. “Doesn’t seem his… what is the word? ‘Style’? It doesn’t seem his style.”

Austin slumped a bit more in his seat and picked at his mashed potatoes. Took a bite. They were good. Not instant for sure.

There was a knock at the door, and of course, Lucille, who had been hiding somewhere, shot for the front door—a red streak—barking all the way.

“Lucille! Good girl,” Uncle Bodie said, rising and shuffling after her. “Good girl. Thank you. But enough. Control. A lady must always maintain a level of dignity fitting her station in life.”

Please have it not be Guy
, Austin begged the Universe.
Anyone but Guy. I’ll unclog a toilet. Just don’t be Guy
.

It was Guy.

Crap
.

“Guy. Are you hungry? We’re having chicken-fried steak, and I made plenty.”

Austin couldn’t quite make out the reply but wasn’t surprised when he looked up and saw Guy approaching. He closed his eyes.
Crap.

“Hey, buddy.” Guy pulled out a chair, turned it around, and straddled it. “You okay? You ran out of there like your pants were on fire.”

Oh God oh God oh God!
Austin took a deep breath. “I’m okay.”

Guy reached out and laid a hand on Austin’s knee, gave it a squeeze. The grip was so strong. Once more, Austin couldn’t figure out if he wanted to pull away or just let it lie there. The warmth seeping through his jeans from that hand felt good. He looked up into Guy’s face—his handsome face—looked into brown eyes filled with concern.

“I’m sorry,” Austin said. “Sorry I ran out. But my God, Guy. I can’t believe that script.”

Guy raised a shoulder and let it drop. “What about it?”

“What do you mean ‘what about it’?” Austin asked. “Jeez, Guy. Did you really think I was going to be able to stand in front of a room full of people and talk about people worshipping my caw…. My… c….”

“Cock?” Guy said, providing the word.

Austin looked away. As always, he felt his cheeks heating up over something Guy had said. Guy had a way of making him feel like a little kid one moment, and more of a man than he’d ever felt at others. This was one of those kid times.

“What about it?” Guy asked. “The script. Not your cock. Not that I wouldn’t mind seeing—”

“Lucille,” Uncle Bodie broke in. “Shall we retire to the boudoir?”

The little Pomeranian barked happily and dashed out of the room.

“I am going to read a book, boys. I’ll get up and do the dishes before I go to sleep.”

“Don’t worry about it, Uncle Bodie. I’ll get it.” Austin stood up, Guy’s hand slipping from his leg.

Uncle Bodie hugged them both—whispered a “Good luck” in Austin’s ear—and headed off to his bedroom.

Austin watched him go, trying not to look at Guy, and then went into the kitchen. Guy followed him.

“What about the script, Austin?” he asked again.

At least he isn’t talking about my dick
, thought Austin.

Austin went to the sink and started the hot water, then headed back to the dining room to get the dishes. “Did you want something to eat?” he asked.

Guy shook his head. “What about the script,” he said a third time.

Austin froze, then spun around. “What’s wrong with the script? You want me to say that some guy paid me to drink my piii….”

“Can’t you even say the word?” Guy shook his head. “Everyone does it, Austin.”

“Everyone doesn’t drink….” He stopped, strode out of the room with plates and silverware.

“
Water
sports, Austin. Golden showers. Some people are into it.”

“Well, I sure as crap aren’t,” Austin cried.

Guy shrugged.

Austin took a step back. “Are you?”

“I would think the only reason you would need to know that would be if you wanted to do it with me” was the reply.

Austin’s eyes went wide. “Well I don’t!” He spun around and practically threw the dishes in the sink, only then worrying about breaking them. It was a relief to remember they were Corelle.

“The point is,” Guy said, “that it doesn’t matter if you or I are into it. It isn’t about you or me. It is about a character. It is about The Kid.”

“A kid who has sex in public restrooms, Guy. Jeez! What made you think I would want to play such a part? When you said controversial, I thought you meant more like your production of
Steel Magnolias
. When you said the show was called
Tearoom Tango
, I was picturing people having tea and maybe lots of screaming like in an Edward Albee play.”

“Sorry, Austin. The T stands for toilet in this case and not something old ladies and English people drink.”

Austin shot him a look. “Yeah. I remember what Karl said. How could I forget—”

“I thought about you because you’re an actor,” Guy answered, eyes flashing. “I thought of you because you liked
Steel Magnolias
and didn’t get all freaked out that half the characters were played by men. That it meant you were open to something different. I thought about you because
since
you’re an actor, you
knew
it wasn’t
you
that you were playing on stage, but a
character
. Were you playing you or Seymour in
Little Shop of Horrors
? Were you playing you when you did
Big River
, or were you Huckleberry Finn?”

Austin’s eyes narrowed. “The Kid can frigging
hardly
be compared with Huckleberry Finn,” he shouted.

Guy stepped close. “Austin, I thought of you in the part because The Kid is stunning. Beautiful. In my mind he has to be
shockingly
beautiful.”

Austin’s mouth dropped open.
Wait. What did he say? Wha…?

“Close your mouth, Austin.”

“Beautiful?” Austin finally managed.

Guy let out a long breath. Gave a single nod. “Yes,” he said, his voice almost a whisper.

“You-you think I’m—”

“Beautiful,” Guy finished.

Austin felt a tremor run down through him, then a jolt. He turned to the dishes, the first sink now nearly overflowing, the bubbles foaming over into the second.
Beautiful?

Guy took another step. He was close. Almost kissing distance. “Beautiful,” he said again. “You’re one of the most beautiful men I’ve ever seen in my life. Like one of those tropical butterflies.”

“Me?” Austin said, his voice cracking.

Another step. Guy’s body was touching his, and Austin trembled again. He could feel the heat of the man against him. Then Guy’s hand was resting at the middle of his back. Austin closed his eyes. God. A man was touching him. He opened his eyes, turned to the man he’d been shouting at, finding now he couldn’t even speak.

Guy reached up with his other hand, cupped Austin’s cheek, let a finger slip over the rim of his ear. A tiny moan escaped Austin.

“Yes,” Guy said. “You.”

Austin closed his eyes once more. Leaned toward Guy an inch, two.
Kiss me
, he thought.
Do it. Kiss me. Please. Kiss me. Take the choice away. Do it
.

Then Guy was stepping away and Austin looked up, saw a different flash in Guy’s eyes. Almost dangerous. And it was all he could do not to moan again.

“I’m sorry if I upset you, Austin. I didn’t want to. Sorry we weren’t on the same page.”

Austin opened his mouth to reply and found he still couldn’t talk. The words wouldn’t come. He didn’t know what to say. There were so many things he wanted to say. “I…. Sorry I messed up. I messed up.”

“No you didn’t. I did.”

Austin stepped toward Guy, but he was already turning away. “I gotta go, Austin. I’ll see you. Soon.” Before Austin could say another word, Guy left.

Crap. Crap, crap, crap!

“S
HERRY
?”

Austin was sitting on the balcony, watching traffic, when his uncle stepped out to join him. “What the hell,” he said. “Why not?” What he wanted was one of those beers of Guy’s, but he certainly wasn’t going up to the man’s apartment to ask for one. That and he had no idea where to get some on his own. Boy. Life turned on a dime. A
dime
. He laughed. Lack of money was one more reason he didn’t need to be out getting beer.

Uncle Bodie was back a moment later with tray and glasses and decanter once again, Lucille swishing around his legs like a cat.

“You know, you’re going to drop all that stuff one of these days. You could just bring out a couple plastic cups with the sherry already in—”

“Good heavens, boy.” He began to pour. “It is the finer things in life, traditions, cut crystal decanters, that separate us from the animals.”

“I thought it was our ability to accessorize,” Austin responded, taking an offered glass.

“What?” Uncle Bodie thought about it a moment and then started to laugh. “Oh! Guy’s play.”

“Yeah,” Austin sighed. “Guy.”

“Hmm,” his uncle said and sat down.

Austin shot him a look. “Don’t ‘hmm’ me.”

Uncle Bodie looked out into the street. A bus had stopped, and an old lady was struggling to get off while a young man waited to get on.

“Look at that,” his uncle said. “Young people. My mother would have slapped me if I had just stood there, mouth hanging open like an idiot, with that poor old woman needing help. Help her.” Uncle Bodie stood and leaned over the balcony. “Help her! You! Young man. Help that lady!”

Both looked up, surprised. The woman had finally managed to get down, along with her little pull cart of groceries, and the young man first gave Austin’s uncle a look of surprise, then flipped him the bird. “Fuck you!” he called, then pushed past the woman and up into the bus.

Uncle Bodie turned and gave Austin a wide-eyed look. “Did you hear that? That youngster cursed me!”

Austin could only clap a hand over his mouth. His uncle never ceased to surprise him.

Uncle Bodie sat back down, shrugged, and took a drink of his sherry. “Oh well. Think of something nice…. I love the fact I have a balcony. Most first-floor apartments don’t. They either have a little patio or nothing at all. But of course, we aren’t really on the ground level, right? Those eight steps make us just high enough to safely have one—we don’t have to worry about someone breaking in, that is. And are you going to tell me what happened with Guy?”

For a second, Austin missed it. “Crap, Uncle Bodie. Just leave it, okay?”

His uncle shrugged. “Whatever.”

“I messed up. Okay? I did. I went in there and started to read that part, and I freaked out. Then he comes over here to find out how I’m doing, and before I knew it, I thought we were going to kiss. I
wanted
him to kiss me. Can you believe it? I am here looking for Todd, and I was going to let him kiss me.”

Uncle Bodie took another sip. “So do you think it is a bad thing to be attracted to another man besides this Todd?”

“I-I don’t know,” Austin replied. “It feels like I, I don’t know, like… cheating.”

“It’s not, you know,” his uncle said. “My God, Austin. You don’t even know if this boy is gay or not. It sounds like ‘not’ is a possibility.”

Austin shook his head. “No. I think he is. You should have seen him that night. I’ve played it out over and over in my mind. I think it was his stepdad. The son of a bitch was always accusing Todd of being a fag, and Todd hated it. I think he didn’t want his stepdad to be right, you know?”

Uncle Bodie didn’t say anything.

“What?”

Uncle Bodie still didn’t say anything.

“Are you thinking about Jimmy? Is that it?”

Nothing.

“Jimmy got
married
, Uncle Bodie. To a woman. Todd didn’t.”

“But he ran away. He wouldn’t talk to you and ran for the hills.” He turned to Austin. “All I am saying is Guy is here, and he is obviously interested in you. And you are interested in him. You have no idea where Todd is, and you don’t really know if he is even gay. Lots of straight men have had sex with another man. It doesn’t mean they’re gay any more than you having sex with that girl made you straight.”

“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush? Did you really just say that?”

His uncle fell silent again.

“Arrgh,” Austin cried, gripping his long hair.

“Take a drink of your sherry.”