Date: Sat, 22 Jan 2011 17:21:25 -0800 (PST) From: Joey Young Subject: Untitled Love Story, Chapter 2 The following is a work of fiction. Any similarities to anyone or place are purely coincidental. The story is intended for a mature audience. It may contain profanity and references to gay sex between teenage characters. If this offends you, please leave and find something more suitable to read. The author maintains all rights to the story. Do not copy or use without written permission. To comment on the story write to Joey at untitledlovestory23@yahoo.com Author's Note: This chapter has less to do with sex, but has more to do with building the background for Caleb's life and future. I appreciated everyone's positive support for my first chapter, and hope to keep you all as my fanbase. You all made Caleb a real character, and made this story worth the praise. Hopefully, I meet your expectations, so here it is the next chapter in Caleb's life. I hope you enjoy . . . -Joey Young Untitled Love Story Chapter 2 The moment I realized I was home, I went straight to my room and rested my head on my pillow, until I fell asleep. Sometime later in the night my mom came in to check on me. She took off my shoes, and covered me with a blanket. I didn't have any dreams that night, and it was a quiet relief from the pain. It was like taking aspirin for a headache and I was in peace for a few hours. The next morning my mom came into my room. "Caleb, are you alright?" she asked clearly concerned. I quickly sat up and subtly wiped my fingers under my nose, checking for blood. I glanced at my fingers and saw no traces of it, and relaxed instantaneously. Thank god, I thought as I deftly hide my blood stained pillow behind my back. "I'm just feeling a little sick is all." I said and settled back down, "Mom, is it okay if I just stay home for a few days?" "Sure, honey." she answered, clearly seeing my disheveled appearance. "You take all the time you need." "Thanks mom," I replied in relief, and snuggled into my comforter. "I'm just going to sleep a little longer." "Okay. Well I'm off to work. I'll be home around five," she said as she got up. "I hope you feel better honey." She gave me a quick kiss and left for work. I immediately went back to sleep, wrapping the blanket like a cacoon around me. When I woke up again, it was three in the afternoon, but it felt like I had barely fallen asleep. Wow, I thought as I blinked myself awaske, I slept the whole day away. I slowly got up, still feeling tired and took a long shower, hoping the water would fully wake me up. But by the time I was done and ready for my moms return, I still felt exhausted. I went downstairs and decided to make my mom dinner. I pulled the ingredients out for spaghetti -my moms favorite- and started to cook the pasta. The kitchen quickly filled with the scents of oregano, parsley, and tomato sauce. I made a quick homemade garlic butter sauce, out of garlic salt and regular butter, lightly spreading it over a loaf of bread cut in half. I popped it in the oven and sat down at the kitchen table, to wait. I looked around for my bag, wanting to finish The Great Gatsby, when I realized that in my haste to get away from Drew, I left it in his truck. Stupid, I thought, chastising myself, why not give him a personal invitation to come back. "Ugghhh!" I groaned loudly. Can I ever catch a break? I got up and checked on the pasta; it was done. I drained the excess water from the pan and continued finishing dinner. The garlic bread was done about 10 minutes later, which gave me plenty of time to set the table. I laid everything out on the kitchen table, from the plates to the silverware, and waited patiently for my mom to come home. 15 minutes later and still no sign of her. Finally, about an hour later the phone rang and I answered it. "Hello?" "Caleb, honey?" I heard my mom say on the other line. "Yeah?" "I'm sorry I'm calling so late, but I was asked to take another shift a work. I hope that's okay." she said. I could hear the sound of an ambulance and commotion in the background. Must have been a big accident. So much for a family dinner, I thought, and suddenly felt unbearably lonely. I quickly pulled myself together and answered my moms question. "Oh, no that's fine mom. I was just going to order out." I lied, "I'm good on food tonight. Don't worry." "Okay honey. I'm sorry, I should have called you earlier, but I thought you'd still be in bed." I laughed, "Mom, it's alright," I said, someone from her end called for her, "you'd better go, there calling you." "Are you sure? I can stay and talk for awhile." she said, making me tempted to keep her on the line, "It seems like we hardly spend time together." "Yeah I'm sure." I replied bravely. "We'll hang out tomorrow. Now go. Save lives." She laughed, "Alright, alright. Night son." "Night mom," I said and the line went dead. I didn't feel like eating anymore, so I put all the food away in plastic containers. I can heat it back up tomorrow, I thought. When I was done, I went into the living room and curled up on the sofa in front of the TV. I watched some boring sitcom that wasn't really funny until I dozed off on the second episode. I woke up sometime later in the night, to the ringing of my doorbell. I checked the time, it was around 8:30. Who could be out this late? I thought as I shuffled to the door, yawning. Then, it immediately dawned on me. Who else would we be out this late, but Drew, probably using my bag as an excuse to come over. I hesitated at door, unsure as what to do. I cursed this house for not having a peephole in its front door. The bell chimed again, making me jump. I inhaled deeply and unlocked the deadbolt. I slowly opened the door and peered out. I exhaled in a sharp gust of relief. "Oh, Stacey, Justin. You scared the hell out of me." I exclaimed clutching my chest. "Sorry man. We tried calling but no one answered." Justin said and sauntered into my house. "Yeah, we got worried when you didn't come to school today, so we decided to pay a visit." Stacey added cheerfully. "We brought Chinese, if you want any?" Justin said as he made himself comfortable on my couch, his feet dangling off the side. Stacey seemed to take that as signal, and pulled two bags of Chinese take out, from behind her back. She held them up and smiled warmly. I smiled back and guided her to the coffee table in the living room. She placed the bag on the table and slowly took out each container. "So what happened. Why weren't you in school today?" she asked, as she licked sweet and sour sauce off her fingers. "I didn't feel good this morning, so my mom let me stay home today." I replied lamely. "Oh? Where is my darling Trudy?" she asked, producing three plastic sporks. I laughed, "She had to pull a double shift again. She'll be back in the morning." "Well good thing we came." Justin said as he joined us at the table to eat. We didn't use plates, but ate out of the same containers. "That must explain the way you look," Stacey said, as she dug into a container. "You look like crap, Caleb." "Yeah, I have to agree with Stace. You look awful," Justin commented, then whispered to Stacey, "Can you pass me the sweet and sour?" I laughed halfheartedly, "Yeah it was some cold." They always seemed know when something changed about me, but they never knew the reason behind it, so I changed the subject. "So anything new in school today?" I asked taking a bite of chicken, savoring the taste. It worked, they started talking about what happened in school today. Apparently the new kid turned down the slut of the school, Clare Foyer, in front of everyone, causing a scene. She of course was a big drama queen and got a crowd of spectators, which only added more to the hilarity of her downfall. "The new kid actually told her no repeatedly," Justin said, with a chuckle, "but she wouldn't take no for an answer. So the new kid practically told her off in a very gracious and sort of funny kind of way." "Yeah," Stacey added, "apparantely he doesn't dig the whole whorish look, Clare has." "Yupp, and he told her, she wasn't worth his time," Justin continued. "So she left, with what diginty she had left, intact." I started to laugh wholeheartedly, in full guffaws, that had me snorting to no end. They both seemed to view my fit of laughter as comical, and joined in. For a full 10 minutes we were rolling on the floor laughing. Evertime we looked at each other, we just started laughing again, until we all had tears in our eyes. Eventually we regained our composure and settled down. I straightened up, and scooted closer to the coffee table, reaching for the fried rice. I was just about to say something pertaining to the story, when Stacey suddenly screamed. "Caleb!" "What?!" I exclaimed in shock. I looked to Justin for some understanding, but his face was a mask of horror also. I glanced between both their faces and immediately thought it was a joke. "Nice try, guys," I said, with a sneer. "Dude your nose," he shouted, "its bleeding!" I quickly ran my finger underneath my nose and sure enough there was blood running down my lip. I jumped up in surprise and ran to the kitchen. I burst through the door and grabbed a paper towel, dabbing at the blood oozing out of my nose. I tore a piece of the towel and rolled it into line. I stuck it halfway up my nose to stop the bleeding. I didn't here them come in until I heard Justin's voice. "You should tilt your head back." he suggested. I obeyed and titled my head back a little. I tried to find my way to a chair but couldn't find it, until Stacey guided me to the seat. "Thanks Stace," I replied, while keeping my head titled back, "ugh, that was weird, huh?" My attempt to lighten the mood didn't work, they remained silent. I turned my head to the side and looked at them. They were staring at me worriedly, from across the kitchen table. "That wasn't funny Caleb. You had us scared. What happened back there?" Stacey asked quietly. I let my head fall back into place, "Oh that? Its nothing. I get those every other day. Its no big deal." My attempt at nonchalance angered her. "How can you be so calm about this, Caleb? Have you told Trudy?" she asked with more volume then necessary. "No, and I don't want her knowing. She has enough on her plate as it is." I replied harshly now. "Well were worried, Caleb. Wasn't this how it started the last time? With you and your dad's cases." "Stace, don't go there." "Caleb, you're my friend and I'm worried about you. That little episode in there has me wondering if - if your condition," she said hesitantly, "has returned." I looked back at them again, and understood their concern. Justin didn't say anything as we quietly argued. But I could tell by the way he stood next to her, that he was thinking the same thing. "There's nothing to worry about Stace!" I exclaimed with anger. "So just drop it. I need go clean up." I stalked out of the kitchen and went upstairs to my bathroom. I quietly closed the door after me, and turned the faucet on. I looked at my reflection in the mirror, fearing the image I would see. I stiffened. I was appalled at the amount of blood I saw. It was all dry and crusty now, but I could definitely imagine how it had looked to Stacey and Justin. The dried blood ran from the bottom of my nose to the top of my chin. It looked like I had doused my mouth in blood. I slowly ran my hands under the stream of water and scrubbed my face, washing away the dry blood. When I was done I made my way back down to the living room and was surprised to see they were still there. I sat on the sofa facing them and wrapped my arms around my knees. We sat in awkward silence, until I couldn't stand it anymore. "So when did you guys want to see that new movie?" I asked trying to break the tension. "This Saturday," Justin answered in a hoarse voice. "Alright," I said in a light tone, "you guys wore me down. I'm in." They stared at me, like I was crazy. I flinched back from their expressions. "Caleb, aren't we going to talk about what happened?" Stacey implored, meeting my gaze full on. "Stace, please. I don't want to talk about it." I said exasperated. "Please as one of my best friends, just drop it. I'm fine." "Dude, you've got to at least go to a doctor or something." Justin said worriedly. I looked at both of them for quite awhile. I saw the only two people who accepted my lifestyle choices, long ago, and still remained my friends. Other than my mom, they were the only family I had left. They would always have my back, and they would alwasy truley care about me. Hadn't I felt guilty for lying to them yesterday? I thought, as I watched both of them. They were my family. I couldn't hurt them. But a little part of me, knew they couldn't handle the whole secret, so I made a compromise. "Alright, alright. Geez. You should both go into telemarketing, your so insistent." I said with an angry huff. "I'll tell my mom tomorrow and I'll get a check up. Just don't tell anyone, alright?" They quickly relaxed a little. "Alright," they agreed. "I mean it," I said with a serious look. "We wont," Stacey said solemnly, "as long as you tell Trudy. She deserves to know, Caleb." I sighed, "Don't worry, I will." They seemed to accept that. "Okay, main event over," I joked. "Can we please finish this greasy food?" They smiled dimly, but began eating again. The rest of the evening was uneventful. They hardly laughed at any of my silly jokes, probably thinking my nose would bleed again if they did. They constantly watched me, out of the corner of their eye, and they weren't to subtle about it, either. Eventually, the evening ended, and they had to leave around midnight. They seemed hesitant to leave, and tried to make excuses to stay, but I had to practically push them out the door, before they finally left. When they were gone I felt relieved. Their concern was touching, but they were suffocating me and I just wanted to be alone for awhile. That was why I hadn't planned on telling people. They worried to much. Always making sure to be careful. Always bringing stuff you didn't need. I was just dreading, the outcome of the situation, if I did become sick again. It would probably be worse then, when everyone found out I was gay. Certainly people would see me in a different light. Gay kid gets cancer and never fully experiences his life. That would get everyone talking. Oh well, as long as I don't have to deal with prejudice classmates in college, I thought as I turned off the TV. Hopefully the school never finds out, because the thing I hate worse than being ostracized, is being pitied. I didn't want people feeling sorry for me, I just wanted them to accept my fate -like I did- and move on. I had learned first hand, the effects cancer had on a patient. My dad had cancer my freshman year, and had passed away. I don't know if he had the same cancer I had, my mom wouldn't tell me, but I knew how it started. Chronic nosebleeds, headaches, and seizures, a few blackouts here and there, nasua inducing days, but I thought that was better than the chemo-therapy. My father had taken chemo-therapy when it was offered, but it made his hair fall out, his skin so raw nobody could touch him and gave him small ulcers in his mouth. I didn't want that. I didn't want to walk around, looking sick and helpless, having everyone pity me. I just wanted to finish my last year of high school, graduate, and maybe go as far as college. Who knows, maybe I don't have cancer, I thought, while folding a blanket I used. Maybe its just stress from school or something, but I will make sure, before everyone gets the wrong impression. I put the blanket in the small closet near the door and headed upstairs, turning off lights as I went. In my room, I changed my clothes. Meticulously folding them into a neat pile. I pulled my soft comforter back and slowly laid down, fully relaxed. The moment my head hit the pillow, I was fast asleep. This time I dreamed. I dreamed I was floating atop a soft billowy substance, that felt like water, but never got me wet. I floated on the soft texture in total bliss, while it carried me away. I didn't care where it took me as long as I stayed in that exact spot. My whole body felt like jelly, all the aches and pains of my heart were gone. I never wanted to wake up. I wanted to float into oblivion, never to return. Suddenly my dream was shattered, by a loud knock at my door. I rolled around in my thick comforter trying to sit up. I finally managed to gain a sitting position and looked around confused. The knock came again, but it wasn't loud at all; it must have been in my dreams. "Caleb, I'm back. Are you awake honey?" my mom asked through the door. "Yeah, you just woke me up." I called as I scrambled up from bed. I checked my pillow and was relieved to see no traces of fresh blood. Maybe I'm not sick, I thought with some glimmer of hope. "Okay, well get ready. I'm making breakfast." she said as her footsteps faded away. I quickly got ready and checked my nose again, making sure there were no traces of blood from last night. Nope no dried blood. I washed my face, which fully woke me up. I looked at my hair. It was in its usual shaggy do, which I could manage. My eyes were wide and sparkling, like dark amber stones. I threw on what I could find and eagerly bounded down the stairs. I burst through the kitchen door feeling bright and fresh. The smell of crisp bacon, pancake batter, and eggs enveloped my senses. I inhaled deeply and walked to the fridge. "Wow, you look better, this morning," my mom commented as I poured myself some orange juice. "Yeah, I am," I replied breathlessly, "but I don't wannna go back to school, today. I thought maybe, we could hang out or something." She eyed me suspicously, "Why's that?" "Nothing in particular," I lied between gulps, "Its like you said, we don't spend that much time together." She expertly flipped a pancake over, before answering, "Alright, but you will catch up, wont you?" "Of course I will. Besides Stace and Justin can help with stuff I don't understand." "Okay, but I don't want you falling behind because of me." I laughed, "Don't worry mom, you have nothing to fear." As I said those last words, I knew today wasn't the day. I wasn't going to taint my mom's endless worries. Not yet. I would find the right time to tell her, but not now. Not when she was finally happy. She smiled warmly and flopped the last pancake onto a plate. She already had the bacon, scrambled eggs, and hash browns on the table. She walked over and placed the pancakes in front of me. I took three and made a small stack. She sat and joined me at the table. We ate in companionable silence, enjoying our breakfast, neither one ready to stop eating. Eventually she spoke. "I saw a big plastic container of spaghetti in the fridge this morning," she said between bites. "Did you make it?" "Oh, that," I replied dismally. "Yeah, but I didn't eat much. So I put it away." She frowned slightly, "I don't like you wasting food, Caleb. . .Well I guess were having that for lunch, then." I shrugged, "Alright, that's fine." The rest of the morning we spent cleaning up the dishes and the messy kitchen. We were still in the cleaning mood, when were done, so we decided to address the much neglected cleaning chores. We went room to room, cleaning where necessary, even rearranging furniture. We talked while we cleaned, making the time pass by quickly. She wanted to know how school was going. If I had filled out that national merit scholarship yet. How my grades were, the usual. We talked about Stacey and Justin. She seemed to agree with me about their obvious chemistry. It got awkward however, when she asked about the boys I liked, and I had no immediate answer. She was perplexed as to why I had no dating history, but I told her I was more focused on school, right now. Which was true, minus the Drew factor. Then she wanted to know more about the schools I wanted to attend, what I wanted to major in, and how she fitted into all of that. I simply replied, "I haven't decided yet." She was confused, "What? Why? You only have a limited amount of time, Caleb." "I'll figure it out when I get there mom, okay," I said while scrubbing the tub. "I just haven't decided what I'll major in yet." "Well that could take forever." "I know, I know. Maybe I could just chose something for the meantime and then change it when I know," I suggested. "Honey, it doesn't work that way," she said peering up from the sink. "Well, what did you do? Obviously you chose nursing." "That's the thing. I knew what I wanted. I didn't change my major. I was already decided on a medical degree. So I went to college and got it." "Oh," was all I said. I stopped scrubbing and pulled myself up. I didn't know it would be that complicated. My mom saw my hesitation and stopped too. "What honey?" "Mom, what if I don't know what I want?" I asked quietly. I thought about my more personal issues, that were still undecided. I thought about next year, and how it all factored into the sudden realization of my sickness coming back. For the first time, I felt a sudden chill come over me. My future was cast to the wind, and I didn't know what my next step would be. She seemed to realize my sudden fear and stood up to look at me. "Oh, honey. There's no need to worry about it now," she said as she placed her hands on my shoulders. "I have a big mouth. I just wanted to know your plans. I didn't mean to scare you. I just want you to start thinking about the future, before its too late." I thawed a little and looked in her eyes. I'm definitely thinking about my future now, I thought, as I gazed into her eyes. "Feel better?" she asked. I nodded not able to speak yet. "Okay, well lets finish and go out. Maybe a movie?" I smiled in agreement. We finished cleaning the rest of the bathroom and it gleamed spotlessly when we were finished. My mom felt proud she accomplished something on her day off and I fully agreed with her. By the time we were done, it was four in the evening. We decided to skip dinner and just have popcorn at the theatre, instead. We took a shower and changed, getting all the cleaning chemicals off our hands and clothes. We took our time getting ready, feeling no hurry. I checked online for the showtimes of all the new movies. My mom wanted to watch a period movie about love, so I indulged her. It started at 6:50, so that gave us roughly an hour to get there and find our seats. We went to the only multiplex theatre in town that was attached to the mall. It was slow for a Wednesday night, but that didn't bother me. We bought our tickets at the front desk and walked into the massive lobby, that housed all the upcoming movie posters. My mom pulled me along as she stared at each one, telling me the ones she wanted to watch. I saw a few I liked and the one Stacey and Justin wanted to see. It was 20 minutes before the movie started, so I told my mom I would get the popcorn, while she found us seats. She agreed and gave me a twenty, before heading to our theater. The line wasn't that long and I waited patiently. My gaze never lingered on one particular spot. It was erratic and moving. I was staring at the lighting fixtures, when the cashier loudly cleared their throat. I jumped, "Oh, sorry," I exclaimed in embarrassment. I could feel my cheeks burn with heat. "Its okay," a deepily accented voice replied and I looked up from the candy counter with surprise. It was the new kid. He looked oddly out of place in the black button up shirt and vest. He looked like a god posing as a nerdy employee. The silly bowtie however made him look boyishly cute. He smiled at my sudden revelation and waved. "Hey, your that new kid," I blurted out unthinkingly. He chuckled lightly and blushed. It made his already handsome face even more endearing. I probably didn't look anything like that when I blushed. "Yeah I am, but you can call me Dante," he corrected with a crooked grin. "Dante Giordano." I smiled timidly, "Hi Dante, I'm Caleb Pierce." "Hi Caleb," he said with a heartwarming smile showing off his brilliant white teeth. "What can I get you?" I felt embarrassingly stupid standing there, "Uhhh, I'll get the combo for two." "Okay, would you like butter?" he asked trying to hide a smile. "Sure," I replied, and looked away. "What kind of soda would you like?" he asked again, this time his smile was more pronounced. "Dr. Pepper," I said quietly. "Alright," he said as he filled two large cups with Dr. Pepper. I saw the sizes he had and stopped him in alarm. "Wait I didn't order the large," I said and noticed the popcorn was large too. "I thought the combo came in medium?" His smiled crookedly and winked, "I know." I stared in disbelief, but eventually smiled back. I waited as he put the lids on the cup and grabbed my popcorn. "Why don't you pick a candy?" he offered as he handed me my food. I stared at him, stupidly, "Are you serious?" "Yeah," he replied warmly, "It's on me." I eyed him suspiciously before pointing out the bag of Twizzler's in the candy display. "The Twizzler's?" he asked. I nodded, not able to speak. "Okay," he said professionally, "Your total comes to an even 12 dollars." His face broke out into a huge silly smile as I handed him the twenty dollar bill. I knew that wasn't the right total, but I kept my mouth shut. He put it in the register and gave me back my change. "Thank you for doing business with us sir," he stated with a serious look, "please come again." I laughed shakily and grabbed the two sodas and candy. "Thanks, for the candy," I replied. He just winked and grinned showing me his pearly whites. I blushed and turned my attention back to the task at hand. I tried to find room in my arms for the popcorn, but couldn't. I arranged the food and beverages over and over again, but couldn't quite hold all of them. He watched me surreptiously as I made a fool of myself, until he finally interjected. "Do you need help?" he asked with a crooked grin. I looked at him impishly, "Yeah I think so." He gave me an endearing smile and turned to another employee, who was sweeping the floor. "Hey, Daniel. Can you watch my register, while I help this customer?" he asked, gesturing to my food. "Yeah, sure dude." Daniel replied and set his broom to the side. Dante made his way around the counter and walked over to where I stood. He grabbed the two sodas from my hands, slightly brushing his fingers over mine. I blushed deeply and turned away before he saw. I grabbed the popcorn and candy, and made my way down the hall. We walked in silence, until I spotted the theater number. "Were in this one," I said, pointing to theater number three. He glanced at the small marquee above the door. His eyebrow arched slightly making his handsome face more dashing. "Nice," he commented as we walked in. "What?" I asked, holding the theater door for him. "You don't like romance movies?" "No," was all he replied with a beautiful grin. We entered the quiet theater, but the advertisements were still showing, so I had some time to find my mom. I looked up at Dante and saw he was staring at me. I looked away quickly, but continued on with our conversation. "Let me guess," I whispered, "you're the kind of guy that likes muscle cars, action, and bloody gore, right?" He chuckled softly. His muscles bulged as he kept the sodas from spilling. "No, I like romance. Its just..." he trailed off as soon as I spotted my mom. I waved to my mom and caught her attention. I saw her eyes bulge as she took in the sight of Dante next to me. I turned to him, ready to hear his answer. "You were saying?" I asked as I waited for an answer. "I was just saying that, I had you pegged down for the romantic type," he replied honestly, which brought me up short. "But I never thought you would see me as the muscle bound jerk, who only likes action." He laughed quietly at my dumbfound expression. "Don't get me wrong," he added, "I like all the action and adrenaline, but I could also enjoy a romantic movie." This time he didn't smile. He just stared intently into my eyes. I stared back, not sure if I should walk up the stairs just yet. "Is that only saved for dates?" I finally asked, breaking his stare, and started to walk up the steps. "Sure, I guess," he answered. "What about you? Does your girlfriend like romantic movies? I turned, and eyed him pecurily. He must have heard from someone at school that I was gay, I thought as I made him stop mid-step. "Haven't you heard?" I asked, rolling my eyes. "I play for the home team." He stared at me intently, before saying, "So, no boyfriend, then?" I stared back in surprise. No one had ever asked if I had a boyfriend before, I thought. It seemed strange to hear it come from a stranger's mouth. I couldn't even come up with a response fast enough. I was to busy staring into his hazel eyes, which were more intense in the dim lighting. Suddenly the sound of the previews broke his intent gaze. I stepped back and noticed we had been leaning into each other unconsciously. "Uhhh, I'd better go sit." I said over the loud previews. "Yeah." he agreed. I walked the few remaining steps and handed my mom the popcorn and candy. She was staring bug-eyed at Dante's immense physique as he waited behind me. I scowled at her, trying to make her stop. After I was sure my mom had a hold of the popcorn I turned in Dante's direction. He was standing so close behind me I bumped into him. Geez, I thought as I noticed the hard feel of muscle underneath his uniform. Our feet were momentarily tangled and he had to dip his head a bit, to see his feet. When he did, his cheek lightly brushed mine. I felt the rough stubble that lined his face, rub against my cheek. It left my skin tingling after he pulled away. I blushed and grabbed the two sodas from his hands. Again, his hands lightly brushed mine, but this time his fingers lingered a few seconds. "Thanks," I said shakily. "For everything." "Your welcome," he replied in his deep accented voice, but his voice was just as hoarse as mine. He turned and walked down the stairs, looking up at me once more, before exiting the theater. I sat down in total silence, digesting what had just happened. My mom seemed to sense my reluctance to talk, and let me stew over Dante. For the first 45 minutes of the movie, I could feel her gaze on me from the corner of her eye, but I didn't return it. She hungrily ate the bag of popcorn and drank her soda in big gulps. I had forgotten how hungry I was and joined her. I tried to watch the movie, but for the life of me could not keep up with the plot line. About an hour and a half into the movie my mom suddenly broke her silence. "For the love of - will you please say something?" she whispered harshly, into my ear. "I don't know what to say," I replied, "he's just a boy from school." "Well I can tell he likes you Caleb," she added. "Really? You think so?" I asked unsure. "Yeah, he couldn't take his eyes off you," she said as she handed me my bag of Twizzler's. "He did give me free candy and didn't charge us for the large sizes," I said, adding to Dante's list of kindness. "Well, what are you waiting for? A formal invitation?" she asked, shoving me softly. I smiled brightly and looked at her. She shoved me again, this time a little harder. She returned a warm smile and mouthed the word 'go'. I got up and bounded down the stairs taking two steps at a time. I didn't know how long his shift was, but I hoped he'd still be there. I burst through the outer door into the main hallway. It was empty, that was a good sign. I swiftly walked down the corridor passing all the other theaters. My whole body shook, with anticpation. My hands began to get cold and clammy with anxiety. I could hear the distant sound of popcorn machines and voices, as I neared the concession stand. I abruptly rounded the corner and broke into a slight jog. As soon as I saw the soda machines, I slowed to a tranquil walk. My heart was beating a mile a minute, and my hands were shaking with nervousness. I went up to the counter and saw that he wasn't there. The guy with the broom, Daniel, was handling a customer, when I walked up. As soon as the customer walked away I caught Daniel's attention, "Hello." "Hi, can I help you?" he asked. Clearly he had forgotten who I was. "Yeah, I was looking for Dante. Do you know where he is?" I asked politely. "Oh, yeah. He went on break about 10 minutes ago." he said. "I bet he's outside or in the food court." "Okay, thanks." I replied and left without another word. I walked to the ticket booth in the main lobby, and looked through the clear doors of the mall's front entrance. I couldn't see anybody out there, but that didn't mean he wasn't outside. I decided to check the food court first, before going outside. I walked down the huge corridor that made up the mall's walkway. The food court was just a little ways from the entrance of the mall, and was nestled into the corner of the building. I could see the many fast food chains lining the Southeast wall, but I wasn't looking for food. I scanned the few faces I saw, sitting at the tables set out in the middle of the huge space. I couldn't see him anywhere, and was about to give up when I suddenly saw his broad shoulders, sitting in a red chair, a few tables from the trashcans. But he wasn't alone. There was a beautiful girl smiling at him from across the table. She had long brown hair, and a cute upturned nose. He seemed to be making her laugh a lot. I could only tell, because her head would suddenly fall back and she would shake with laughter. Her soft hair fell into her eyes and momentarily covered her lovely features. When she finally settled down she reached across the table and grabbed his hand, pulling it to her chest, holding it there. My heart fell slightly and I felt like fleeing in that moment, but I was rooted in place. I watched as she leaned across the small table, closing the short distance between them and kissed him fully on the lips. I gasped and turned away quickly. I swiftly walked out of the huge cafeteria-like building, back into the mall's main walkway. My chest sent blistering thorns twisting through my heart. I had a huge lump in my throat, the size of a golf ball. I felt like crying, but the thorns made it unbearable even to breathe. The pain radiated throughout my body, making every joint that I moved, hurt. I ran outside into the cool air, gasping for oxygen, to clear my head. I found a long ledge that held a huge landscape full of plants and flowers. I sat down on the ledge and let my head fall into my hands. I couldn't believe I had let myself hope. Hope that anything in this world would ever work in my favor. I sat there, for what seemed like hours. I reflected on my useless endeavors and personal life. I saw the hopeless relationship I was always thrown back into, with Drew. The dark secret I kept, from the only family I had left. The lies I told, to my two best friends. And finally the cherry on top of a fantastic life: dealing with the constant strain of being gay. I had hoped I found another soul I could relate to, when I met Drew, but was sadly mistaken. And tonight, I thought that my luck had changed for the better. I continued to sit there and mull over my life, until I suddenly realized; I'm just feeling sorry for myself. I shouldn't let societies views, and opinions rule my life. I shouldn't allow one broken crush destroy my self esteem. I stood and yelled at the little voice in the back of my head. What do I do now? I waited patiently for the verdict of that little voice, who guided me through many obstacles. I waited and waited, hoping to hear anything. Finally it answered, Go back inside, Caleb. I waited for more, but that's all it said. I listened dutifully and went back inside. Immediately, I saw my mom waiting by the ticket booth for me. She glanced around, nervously tapping her foot on the hard linoleum floor. I waved at her, willing my stiff cheeks to form a smile. She was instantly relieved when she saw me enter through the glass doors. "I've been looking everywhere for you," she exclaimed. "Where were you?" "I needed some fresh air." I lied smoothly. She saw through my lie and gave me a speculative glance, "So I take it, it didn't go well?" "Just not the right time," I replied vaguely. "I see," she replied solemnly. "Are you okay?" I sighed, "I'm fine mom. Can we just go home?" She walked up and wrapped her arm around my shoulder, "Okay, lets go home." We didn't say anything on the ride home, other than what radio station I wanted to listen too. When we finally got home, I warmed up the leftover spaghetti for both of us. While we ate, we talked about random events in our lives, we hadn't talked about earlier. She told me the hospital had received a new mammogram machine, that the nurses were excited about. I laughed at the nurses sense of fun and she joined in after seeing my point of view. The mood lightened a bit after that, making dinner more bearable. She continued to talk about the upcoming expansions, and technology to the hospital. While I told her about being shanghaied into concession clean up this Friday. This time she was the one to laugh, saying nobody could turn down Stacey and her quest for power. I agreed completely. It wasn't that hard to have a relationship with my mother, so our uncomfortable silences never lasted long. For the rest of the evening we sat around watching the latest, reality TV show. It was idiotic and mind-numbing to watch, but the quality time was what we both wanted. Tomorrow, I would go back to school, and she would go back to working double shifts. So our little time spent together was always valuable. I just dreaded returning to school, for four main reasons. First, I was certain there would be a small stack of homework waiting for me to complete. Second, Stacey and Justin would definitely ask about my mother's reaction to my supposed cancer news, so I had to find a way to avoid that conversation. Third, Drew would probably have some elaborate plan concocted to pull me back into our warped relationship. And I was pretty sure my bag was the key component. Finally, and the most grueling reason I didn't want to return to school; Dante. I had made a complete fool of myself today. He probably thought I was some love-struck teenager, who had a huge crush on the sexy exchange student. He probably dealt with this all the time, and I had added a new chapter to his endless string of hapless followers. Man I was a piece of work, I thought as I got ready for bed. Maybe someday I would leave all this drama behind, and be happy. I smiled at the thought and curled up under the covers. Someday, I thought drowsily, someday. Please send comments to untitledlovestory23@yahoo.com