Chapter Twenty-Eight
As summer rolled along, JJ and Travis became
inseparable, having sleepovers at each other's houses every other weekend. And
on days like today, when Travis had to babysit the twins, he brought them with
him to JJ's house. David was chilling against the side of the pool while Asher
and Bobby ran wild. Meanwhile, David's sister Shari and Amber were busy
watching makeup tutorials on YouTube.
JJ exited the pool to grab a pop, and Bobby
and Asher pulled down his shorts, laughing as they ran away.
"You're dead when I catch you!" JJ said as he
hoisted up his shorts. Running after the pair, he'd almost caught them when
they split up.
Screw them. It's too hot for this shit.
He got a can of Mountain Dew from
the cooler and chugged it, burping when he'd finished it.
"Still wish you weren't an only child?" Travis
said, smirking.
"Yeah," David said, laughing as he scratched
under his cast.
JJ's heart skipped a beat. "Dudes, you scared
the crap outta me. And no
offense, Travis, but Bobby's peak r/EntitledKids
material. And with Asher around, they're frelling
monsters."
David chuckled. "Hey, Asher isn't that bad.
It's Bobby that's the real monster."
Travis shook his head, laughing. "Dude, tell
me something I don't know." He turned to JJ and whispered, "There's something I
need to tell you."
JJ's heart went aflutter. Could this be the
moment Travis declared his undying love for him, and they kissed and
more?
"Earth to Josh," he said, waving
his hand in front of JJ's face. "You listening?"
Cheeks flushing, he said, "Sorry, I zoned out
for a minute."
Looking annoyed, Travis sighed, then sucked in
his bottom lip. "I asked if you were busy later."
"Nope. What's so important?"
"I'd rather not say." He cut his eyes toward
David. Then he slapped JJ on the ass and ran away. He gave chase, and when he
caught Travis, he tackled him. They rolled on the grass, each trying to pin the
other until Travis tapped out.
Puffing twice on his inhaler, he sighed and
placed his arm around JJ's shoulder. "You're quick for a shrimp."
"Oh, you can screw right off. You're only four
inches taller than me," he said and play-hit Travis, starting a shoving match
that turned into them wrestling on the ground again. JJ laughed until he felt
Travis's erection against his, and Travis bolted for the pool.
After that, David and his siblings left,
followed by everyone else, until JJ was alone. He cleaned up the chip bags and
pop cans, then read comics and manga awhile before pulling up Two Peas
in a Pod, one of his all-time favorite online gay
love stories. He'd read it like a million times. It was your typical story
about best friends who are secretly in love with each other but damn if it didn't always hit him right in the feels.
Around five o'clock, his stomach
growled, so he heated up some of his mother's famous lasagna. She'd made it as
a peace offering for her and his father not being home like they said they
would. They had to fly out to Singapore for another big deal, two days after
returning from Dubai.
He could literally count on one hand the times
he'd seen his parents that year. He got that they needed to make money to keep
up their lifestyle, but he'd rather they lived in a modest neighborhood like
Travis's if it meant seeing them more often. He'd told them as much on several
occasions, only to have them laugh him off. He didn't understand it. What good
was it to gain the world but lose your soul in the process?
This was too deep for him to figure out on an
empty stomach.
After eating, he cleaning
his dishes, then hopped on social media to see what his friends had been up to.
Their posts were mostly pictures of them doing shoots or smoking weed. God,
what he wouldn't give to get high. While he was browsing and liking posts, he
got a DM from Drew Long, a friend of a friend, asking him when his End of
Summer Party would be. He'd forgotten all about that. Honestly, he had no
interest in hanging with anyone besides Travis and the Squad, so he told him to
spread the word there wouldn't be a party this year.
Next, he set up a group chat with the
Squad, and they decided to hang together sans Travis the next day since they
were all free. Afterward, he texted Travis to let him know he'd be busy
tomorrow.
Travis's reply was: OK
U mad?
No
What did ya wanna talk to me about?
Forget it.
K 😕
Later
JJ tried texting him again, but his messages
stayed on read, so he went back to reading.
***
JJ belted out the lyrics to Welcome to
the Black Parade, strumming his air guitar with gusto. When the song ended,
everyone gathered in his room laughed.
Lance popped out his prosthetic eye and rubbed
the hole where it used to be. "Dude, what's up with you today? Your spaz level
is off the chart."
JJ glared, wondering why he bothered.
"Nothing, I'm just being myself is all."
Lance blew on his eye and then popped it back
in place. "Well, you're at an eleven, and Imma need ya to bring it down to a seven."
JJ ground his teeth, clenching his jaws. "If
you don't want to be here, then leave."
Rachel looked up from her phone, frowning.
"Hey now, we've barely seen you all summer, and you're being douchey AF."
JJ chewed on his bottom lip before saying,
"Excuse me for not being the life of the party all the time. You know, I have
feelings, too."
Matt looked at him sideways. "Jesus, JJ, what
crawled up your vag and died?"
Rachel and Brianna shot Matt dirty looks.
JJ shook his head. "I'll tell ya what my problem is. I'm sick of people riding my dick so
they can partake in my booze and hospitality."
Mouth agape, Henry did a double-take.
"Who are you, and what did you do with our JJ?"
"Don't mind him. He's just extra salty that he
can't hang with his boyfriend," Jason said from the doorway.
JJ glared as Jason and David entered the room
and sat on the beanbags situated around his bed. "Go screw yourself with a rusty
hacksaw."
Jason laughed and flipped him off. "What? It's
true. We barely see ya anymore, and when we do,
you're always texting or calling Turner."
"Has it occurred to you that I like hanging
with him more than y'all?"
David shook his head. "You don't mean
that, and you know it."
Brianna cleared her throat. "Really? Cuz I'm starting to wonder that myself."
Chomping his gum, Jason smacked his lips and
then blew a bubble. "He's been acting different ever since he and Turner
started hanging. If ya ask me, he's been replaced
like in that movie with them pod people."
"Invasion of the Body Snatchers," JJ
said, scowling. "And FYI, I'm just being myself. Something Travis likes."
Henry flexed his arms, his two-sizes-too-small
shirt straining against his muscles. "Jesus. The way you keep bringing up
Travis, it's like you're in love with the kid or something."
"I am not!"
"No need to shout," Lance said, eyeing him
hard. "Bro, there's a party tonight, and you're going with us. Unless you'd
rather spend time with your precious Travis?"
Frell me. If I don't go,
they might start to suspect Travis and I are more than friends. Are we? Never
mind.
"Alright, cum guzzler. I call your bluff. I'll
go with ya."
Lance smiled. "My man."
"On one condition: Travis comes with."
Everyone, save the girls, groaned.
"What? He's my friend, too, and he's never
been to a party."
A mischievous glint came into Matt's eyes.
"Then let's get him fucked up."
Right," everyone but JJ said.
JJ tugged on his ear. "I don't know about
this. The kid drank vodka once max, and I don't want him getting too wasted. Ya feel me?"
Matt scoffed. "Stop being a pussy. Besides,
that's all the more reason to get him hammered."
JJ gave several reasons why that wasn't a good
idea until Henry cut in. "What you scared he'll hook up with a girl . . . or
another guy?"
"Fuck you!"
JJ called Travis and told him about the party,
but he declined. "Come on," JJ begged, "you've never been to one, and I'll be
there."
"Even if I wanted to go, I have to watch my
siblings."
"Dude, they're plenty old enough to be by
themselves. My parents left me home all the time, beginning when I was ten.
Plus, your mom's working a double shift, and your dad won't be home till
tomorrow afternoon. Plenty of time for you to go and be back without them ever
knowing."
"What if Bobby and Amber tell on me?"
"You'll get grounded, big whoop."
"All right, I'll go."
"Yes!"
He told Travis to be at his house at nine
o'clock sharp and to wear something besides his standard hoodie/tees and
sweatpants/basketball shorts. Travis grunted and ended the call.
For the rest of the night, JJ and his friends
listened to music, which they voted JJ couldn't choose since he was acting all
extra. Then they played video games and laughed as they told stories about old
times. But JJ couldn't shake the feeling something bad was going to happen at
the party.
***
At eight o'clock, he brought out the vodka,
and they each had a couple shots as they waited for Travis to arrive.
At ten to nine, Travis called, saying he'd was
walking up JJ's driveway. When JJ saw him, he could hardly contain himself.
Travis had parted his hair down the middle, gelled it, and was wearing a beige
polo with matching khakis and Hush Puppy shoes.
"You look good," he said, trying not to let on
how turned on he was right then.
Travis laughed. "Yeah, Mother got me this
outfit last Christmas. Though, why she still insists I attend church is beyond
me. Jason, David, good evening."
When he got to Brianna and Rachel, he bent and
kissed their hands. JJ swooned, wanting to be them hella
bad. "Ya Goddamn phony."
Travis laughed and threw his arm around JJ's
shoulder. "Someone's totes jelly."
"As if," he said and then whispered to Travis
if he'd been browsing urbandictionary.com again. "Fo'
shizzle my gnizzle frizzle."
At this, everyone laughed, save Jason, who was
sending Travis death glares. JJ would have to talk to him about that later, but
right now, he was too busy enjoying Travis's company to care. He offered Travis
a drink, but he declined, saying he would have something at the party.
"Who'll all be there?" Travis asked.
JJ ticked off names, but Travis stared at him
with a vacant expression. "Aside from you guys, I won't know anyone there."
Brianna wrapped her arm around Travis's waist,
and he flinched, but only JJ was perceptive enough to notice it.
"My mans, the point of a party is to get wriggity, wriggity wrecked. And
besides, I met all these assholes, no offense, at one
of JJ's parties. So maybe you'll meet some folks, too. Who knows, you might get
lucky before the night's over."
Blushing, Travis nonchalantly wiggled out of
Brianna's grip, and everyone laughed at him.
"I think Travis is a virgin," Matt said and
laughed that foghorn laugh of his.
Travis folded his arms, inclining his head.
"What's the matter, Mitchells? 'Fraid someone will
get to me before you?"
Matt stared at him, grimacing, and then burst
out laughing. "Good one, kid. But ya keep that shit up, and Imma get
medieval on that ass."
They bullshitted
around a while longer until Jason announced he'd received a text from the host
of the party saying it was time for them to head out. Jason requested an Uber
SUV, and JJ requested an Uber black, and they split the fare.
"You're good for your portion, right?" he said
to Travis as he entered the BMW Series 5.
"Yeah. Don't go leaving me alone, okay?"
"Keep saying stuff like that, and you'll make
me think you like me."
Travis socked him in the arm, and they were
off.
When they arrived, JJ tried to stick close to
Travis, but inevitably, some friend pulled him away to catch up. As the night
wore on, he lost track of Travis. He felt guilty at first but thought, Hey, he has to learn to fend for himself some
time, right?
Author's Note: Next chapter, Travis gets his
party on and has his first proper kiss.
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