Something Like Lightning (8 page)

The rest of the shelves were filled with the little souvenirs of life. And a large number of plastic animals. A rhino hung out with a gorilla, a rat, and a cheetah. This was a fairly normal gathering compared to the next shelf up, where a tyrannosaurus kept company with a giant spider, an even larger scorpion, and a surprisingly small pterodactyl. The models weren’t at all realistic or in scale. In fact, they appeared to be nothing more than toys. Kelly grabbed a falcon and held it up, turning to William for an explanation.

“Oh,” he said, as if embarrassed. “I’ve had those since forever. They’re actually robots.”

Kelly blinked. “You mean like Transformers?”

“Yeah,” William said, joining him at the shelf. “But not like the crazy movie that came out earlier this year. These are from when we were little. Do you remember
Beast Wars?”

Kelly shook his head. “I was into
Power Rangers'”

William grimaced as if this was distasteful. “I could never get into that show.
Beast Wars
was so much better. It was all CGI, which was rare at the time, and the plots were amazing.”

Kelly took in how excited William was getting and smiled. “Wait, do you collect these?”

William made a face, like he was trying to be cool. “Nah, they’re just sort of around. I’ve had them since I was a kid. Don’t know what to do with them now.”

Kelly glanced back at the display. The carefully arranged figures were dust free. And they were numerous. More than most parents would buy their children of any one toy line. “You know,” he said, “my kid brother is still young enough to appreciate these. I’d be happy to take them off your hands for you.”

William’s eyes went wide in panic. Then he realized he’d been caught and his shoulders slumped. “Don’t tell anyone,” he said. “It’s my deepest darkest secret.”

“I can only imagine the scandal this would cause at school,” Kelly teased. “So show me how this one transforms.”

William took it from him and happily demonstrated. “The falcon is actually female. I know what you’re thinking, how can robots be male or female? I don’t know either, but I think it’s cool. In the show she’s actually dating the white tiger over there. It’s sort of romantic, especially what happens to them in season two.”

Kelly raised an eyebrow and tried not to laugh. He failed.

“Don’t judge,” William said. “At least not blindly. We could check out some episodes together. It’s not like there’s anything else to do.”

Kelly glanced over at the cookies and milk, at the toys, then at William himself, who sort of had that big-kid vibe. He found himself matching William’s smile and nodded in agreement. Soon they were sitting side by side on the bed, watching computer-generated animals have serious conversations or do battle. The show wasn’t bad. Some poor writer had surely been hired by a toy company to come up with a reason why a bunch of robots would need to disguise themselves as animals, many of which were already extinct. And somehow the end result was compelling. Maybe a little campy at times, but he soon found himself concerned for the welfare of the characters.

“I can tell you like it,” William said after the third episode. “Go on, admit it!”

“My expectations were low,” Kelly said. “It’s not exactly a Pixar movie.”

“The animation was groundbreaking at the time,” William insisted. “You at least liked the story, right?”

“Yeah,” Kelly said. “I did.”

William beamed. “If you want, we could watch a few together now and again. It doesn’t take long to get through the series. And just wait until you get to a certain episode in the next season! You’ll cry. Not that I did or anything. Um.”

Kelly glanced over at him. Of course he wanted to do this again. William was easy to be around. And kind of cute, which was enough to make Kelly’s smile fade. He wouldn’t put himself through this. Kelly didn’t want to start a new friendship because more likely than not, it would lead to unreciprocated feelings, and that hadn’t been the worst of it. What hurt most was Jared rejecting Kelly as a person. Even if they couldn’t be together, they could have at least remained friends. Maybe William wouldn’t react the same way. Maybe he would. Either way, Kelly needed to know now, before things went too far.

“Did you get what I said earlier?” he blurted out. “When I said that I like Jared too much, did you get what I meant?”

The carefree light left William’s eyes. “What did you mean?”

“I’m gay,” Kelly said.

William searched his face, as if gauging how serious he was. Then he looked away. Maybe that’s how straight guys dealt with what they didn’t approve of. They simply turned their backs. So be it. He and William barely knew each other. The rejection still hurt, but not as bad as it would have months or even years from now.

Kelly stood, grabbed his coat, and headed for the door.

“Wait!” William stood and put a hand on his shoulder. “You don’t have to go.”

Kelly spun around. “Don’t I?”

“Uh.” William glanced past him at the bedroom door. Then, in a quieter voice, he said, “It’s okay. What you said. I’m okay with it.”

“That I’m gay?” Kelly asked.

William winced at the volume of his voice, responding in a whisper. “Yes.”

“Then why are you—” Kelly lowered his voice. “Are your parents homophobic or something?”

“I don’t know,” William replied. His green eyes seemed to be pleading with Kelly, like he wanted him to fill in the blanks.

Kelly immediately jumped to one conclusion, but he didn’t have much faith in it, because he’d been so wrong when it came to Jared. “Look,” he said. “There’s one more thing I’d like to get out of the way, because it’ll make things easier on me. And don’t get all offended, because this doesn’t mean I’m hoping that you are, or that I’m even interested. But I’ve told you what I am. So now it’s your turn.”

William glanced at the bedroom door again. Then he moved his mouth without saying anything. Finally, he managed one short sentence. “I don’t know.”

Kelly stared at him. “You don’t know?”

William swallowed, eyes darting to the door. “This probably isn’t the best time.”

“Okay,” Kelly said quickly. “I get it. I think. Do you want to go for a drive?”

William shook his head. “Dinner will be ready soon.”

“Yeah, it is getting late,” Kelly said, unsure if he was being sent away. His head was spinning. Instinct told him he needed to retreat, that any more pressure now would be detrimental to... well, whatever. “Maybe we can get together tomorrow?”

William nodded. When he spoke again, he no longer sounded like he was choking on his own words. “When do I get to see you run? I’m starting to think you’re all talk.”

“I’ll prove I’m not. After school. Tomorrow.” He thought briefly of a happy face behind pink glasses. “Let’s go somewhere else. I’m sick of the track. I know a good park with jogging paths. Meet me by my car?”

“Yeah,” William said. “Okay.”

They eyed each other for an awkward moment. Then William insisted on seeing him out. They were on the front walkway, struggling to find parting words, when a cherry-red sports car roared into the driveway, music blaring. The windows were up, so Kelly couldn’t make out what song it was, but the beat sounded contemporary. The man who stepped out of the car wasn’t quite so fresh. Kelly recognized him from the family portrait, except now his hair was thinning, his features lined. He had a nice build though, and a friendly smile when he pumped Kelly’s hand.

William seemed a little embarrassed. “Dad, this is Kelly. Kelly, this is my dad.”

“Hey man, how’s it going?” Mr. Townson said. “What do you think of the car?”

“Very sexy,” Kelly said. “Is it new?”

“Just got it last week,” Mr. Townson grinned. “Not sure what the point is, because now I’m working overtime every night.”

“Then you should let me have it,” William said.

Mr. Townson feinted like he was boxing with his son and laughed. “Not a chance. You staying for dinner, Kelly?”

“No, I better get home.”

“Maybe next time.” Mr. Townson threw an arm around William’s shoulders and dragged him toward the house, in his wake a whiff of cologne that smelled more fruity than musky.

Kelly watched them go for a second before he got in his car. William’s parents seemed really nice. Not at all starchy or conservative. If William was gay, why would he worry about his parents not accepting him? Or maybe that’s not what he was trying to tell Kelly at all. Either way, he wouldn’t find out until after school tomorrow.

“He’s gay,” Bonnie said firmly.

When she noticed that Kelly still had his doubts, she crossed her arms and leaned against his car, despite it still being slick from the recent rain. After leaving William’s house, he had driven straight over to her place, sending only a quick text that simply read
CALAMITY,
their code word for a dramatic emergency. She had met him in the driveway so they could have privacy, because when it came to Bonnie’s sister, not only did the walls have ears, but the ceilings and floors did too.

“He could just be questioning,” Kelly said.

Bonnie smirked. “He needs to be answering, because it’s obvious. It reminds me of all those closeted celebrities who, when asked about their sexuality, respond with ‘I want to keep my personal life private.’ Straight people
never
say things like that. Or at least they have no problem admitting they like the opposite sex, even if they don’t want the world to know who they’re dating. So when someone gets all coy about their sexuality, it’s a total giveaway.”

Kelly studied his shoes and nodded. “Yeah, probably. Unless he felt sorry for me and was trying to make me feel less alienated.”

“No,” Bonnie said.

“He
is
really nice. Ridiculously so.”

“Maybe, but no. You said you felt like he wanted to talk about it. If he was pretending, what would there be to say?”

Kelly raised his head, considered all the evidence once more, and finally gave in. “Okay. You’re right. He’s gay.”

Bonnie peered at him. “Then why don’t you sound happier? From what you described, he sounds hot. I’d love to date some sexy swimmer chick.”

“Finding a pretty face has never been the issue,” Kelly said. “If that’s all I wanted, I would have shacked up with someone in group by now. I need a guy I can connect with on a deeper level.”

“Like Jared,” Bonnie said, her tones sympathetic.

“Yes,” Kelly said. “Someone like that. Except reciprocated.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pushed you to—”

“No, you were right. The guy is a dick. It’s good I found out now instead of later. I just wish I could erase him from my mind because he’s in there way too deep.” Kelly pressed his back against the car, feeling water slowly soak into his shirt and chill his skin. “You’re right that I should be excited. William is hot. He’s sweet. He’s motivated. All things that I look for in a guy.”

“Plus he’s got an awesome Transformers collection,” Bonnie said. Kelly snorted. “Right. I just feel like the timing is off. If I had met him before I really started falling for Jared. Or maybe a year from now when I’ll finally be over him—”

“It won’t take that long,” Bonnie said. “Trust me. You just need to keep your distance from Jared and let William get closer. Mother Nature will take care of the rest. She knows how to make you gay boys dance.” “Maybe you’re right,” Kelly said. “But I’m not done with Jared. Not yet.”

“Your plan for revenge. How could I forget?” Bonnie shook her head. “Let it go.”

“Nope,” Kelly said. “I hurt him back first.
Then
I move on.”

Jared seemed in high spirits. He wore a constant grin when Kelly spotted him at his locker between classes. During lunch he could barely stay seated, his voice loud. Jared always behaved that way when exceptionally happy. These good vibrations didn’t extend to Kelly, who he steadfastly ignored. Trying to do the same, Kelly kept his focus on his cell phone screen while he ate, willing the world around him to disappear. He failed, of course, his fork jabbing the lunch tray harder when Jared mentioned how Martha planned to switch lunch periods just to be with him. Kelly already knew he wouldn’t be able to handle that. Either he needed to find a different table, or he needed to change lunch periods. Hell, maybe he and Martha could go to the office together and offer to swap.

When he was finished eating, Kelly left the cafeteria early and headed to his locker. There he fetched the books he needed for the rest of the day so he wouldn’t have to return between classes and see Jared again. This made his backpack tediously heavy, but he told himself it counted as weight training.

Once the school day ended, he waited by his car. When William showed up, Kelly tried viewing him without bias. No Jared, no bruised-and-battered heart, just him and another guy meeting for the first time. A plain white T-shirt hung off William’s impressive chest, the fabric loose around the narrow waist. He wore shorts today, showing off muscles rounded and soft, unlike the tight and ropey legs of a runner. The pale skin and blond hair couldn’t have been a starker contrast to Kelly’s own, but they shared the same slightly troubled expression. Kelly realized this first, forcing himself to smile. William soon did the same, his green eyes lighting up a moment before uncertainty returned. No doubt about it. The big talk would happen today.

After a standard greeting, they got in the car and headed to the park. Conversation floundered along the way. William mentioned how he’d skipped swimming to save his strength, and how he had even slept later than usual. Kelly’s responses were polite but minimal, since he wanted to give William the chance to broach a more important subject. Or maybe Kelly was expected to raise the issue, since by the time they reached the park, the car interior had gone silent. Kelly parked, shut off the engine, and waited.

“Nice,” William said, nodding through the windshield. In front of them, a paved path wound and disappeared into a thick forest. Away from human bustle, the birds here were confident, their song more robust. A pair of squirrels chased each other up a tree, and in the patches of unmaintained lawn, butterflies flitted around tufts of wildflowers. “Very nice.”