Did You Know That Roses Were Red?

Mikey:
you're coming for this party or we are coming to grab you. your pick bro

I felt like it was exactly what I needed, so there wouldn't be any grabbing necessary. Julian had shaken me, and I had to stop thinking about it.

               Shivers usually traveled down but these ones moved from my feet to where my hands were circled around him. So much warmth from his solid body. He smelled like sunshine and boyishness. I wanted the hug to last longer, deep down I knew I did. So this party was a mechanism of sorts.

               The party was raging when I got there. I nodded while smiling as I got out of my car. This was the stuff.

It would get wild from here on out with such a party. I'd get lost in it and forget whatever moments I shared with Julian. Except it didn't feel like he was leaving my head anytime soon.

               "Kayden's hereeeee!" I hear someone screech out and I realised it was Dane. He was part of the basketball team, but not one of the guys I frequently hung out with, so I mostly only saw him at school. And—no surprise here—parties.

Suddenly almost the entire basketball team was rushing towards me. Especially the ones I hadn't seen in more than two weeks. And in the next moment, I was up in the air, and people were cheering all around me.

I was almost forgetting how far these boys could act out. It tore a laugh from my chest.

I was set at one end of a table with almost the entire party gathering around. "My challenge still stands," said Dane. He smiled while looking directly at me.

He'd challenged me to a drinking contest. It was an age old tradition of the basketball team. Especially if we'd won a game and someone threw a party. Someone always threw a party. This one was his.

"Pfft," I scoffed and looked to the side at my boys. "Someone recording this?" I asked. "Because dear old Daney here is about to have his ass handed to him." The crowd cheered and hollered then started to chant.

Mike controlled the chanting, and it got louder as a bottle of hard liquor was placed in my hand. "Three!" Everyone screamed.

"Two!"

"One!"

"Go!"

Dane and I began to chug on our bottles as the crowd went wild. It was a bad idea. I had to drive home but fuck that. A challenge was a challenge, and boys were as stupid as they came.

It was too loud to hear my own thoughts anyway...with everyone shouting and alcohol filling inside me.

I set my empty bottle of alcohol down before Dane did, it slammed so hard it was a wonder the bottle didn't break. It was the announcement of my victory.

"Fuck!" Dane said with a big grin on his face after he'd finished his bottle. "You secretly Irish or what?"

"That's what I'm talkin' 'bout!" Mike jostled and patted my back with his large hands. The crowd began to go wild.

"Kay-den! Kay-den! Kay-den!" Practically everyone chanted as we walked away to sit on a couch.

There were a few people on it, but seeing our approach, they scurried off, leaving the area empty. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

I leaned back on the couch and scanned the room, sipping on an orange coloured drink I'd accepted from someone, my phone on the other hand. Bad idea. I put it away.

"No..." I heard Knox say as my gaze turned to him. "You're so pretty, but no..."

The girl he was politely turning down just smiled and got up. She gestured with her hands as if to say 'I'll call you' while walking away. Knox just shrugged.

Or that's what I thought. I couldn't see his face but the girl could. He kept looking at her and she seemed a little scared before hurrying away. By the time he turned to me, he was smiling. As if he was harmless.

               "How are you the one turning people down yet we have to try and hit on people?" I asked him, advocating for Mike and Liam too.

               Knox parted his legs. "Besides the fact I'm the shit?" He asked.

His focus was lost after that. I turned to see whatever had caught his attention and I saw Kit making a girl blush furiously as he smiled charmingly.

I turned back and Knox had a frown on his face. "You just let a really hot chick leave bruh, why are you staring at Kit?" I asked.

"He's making a fool out of himself," Knox scoffed. "It's entertaining."

How did he...

No...he couldn't know.

I ignored Knox before I could draw any unnecessary attention. The alcohol was starting to really kick in at this point, and yet I kept drinking.

"Maybe you should slow down with the drinking," a random girl, who was suddenly seated almost on me and leaning on my arm said.

She smiled at me and I smiled back. "You think so?" I asked. "You been noticing?"She was cute. Dark skin, hazel eyes, big puffy hair. She didn't look like the type to screw around though.

"Yeah and hell yeah." She let a finger trace my chest through my shirt.

I bent to whisper in her ear. "What's your name?"

She first kept smiling at me, then put a little distance between us. "I'll tell you upstairs," she said then got up and walked away.

Huh. Very cute indeed. I probably wouldn't remember her name but I took the bait.

I got into a room I saw her disappear into, and as soon as I got in, the door was locked. I saw her stand against it, looking very shy with her hands behind her back. Nothing was going to happen if she didn't want it to, even if I was half drunk.

I walked over to her and she suddenly hugged me. A little confused, I hugged back. "Hey," I cupped the side of her face and looked down at her while she looked up at me. "Are you sure about this?"

She shook her head, then shook it more vigorously as if to erase the first shake. "Yes...I mean I'm sure now."

"You weren't sure before?"

"A couple of friends put me up to this...I didn't want to at first but I approached you because I wanted to prove a point," she said.

I sighed. Of course this was the problem.

"But in here it's just me and you, and I got a little shy because I realised I really wanted to do it. Don't worry it's not my first time."

"Only if you're sure," I said.

"I am," she said and as if to prove her point, she kissed me.

From then on out, it was our tongues sliding against each other, clothes being discarded everywhere, until we were both in our underwear and she was straddling me on the bed.

With her eyes looking down in mine and my arms around her waist, I surprised myself by asking. "So does Miss Gorgeous have a name?"

She smirked. "She does. It's Julian."

It took me a few seconds to realise I probably heard her wrong. "Say that again," I replied.

Her giggle was the kind that made you smile for no reason. "Jenine," she said.

"Jenine..." I repeated, smile still intact, to make sure it was the correct name while I unclasped her bra.

"I guess I stumbled upon a sex god tonight," she said with her chest exposed to me, her bra well on the way to the floor. "I've heard the stories."

"Sex god might be stretching it," I chuckled. "But I'll do my best." She giggled when I kissed between her breasts. "And I don't disappoint."

•••

Jenine left after giving me several extra kisses and almost getting us to a repeat of one the best sexual encounters I've ever had.

I lay down on the bed half naked from the waist up, and stared at the ceiling lost in thought about nothing in particular.

Kit's sudden intrusion into the room also extended to my thoughts. I snapped out of them as he locked the door.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"If you won't talk to me sober, then at least you'll listen when you're a little drunk."

"What makes you think that?"

"You haven't made any attempt to leave the bed," he said. He had a fair point.

Kit sat at the other end of the bed. He cracked his knuckles.

"I've been..." said Kit. "I've been absolutely terrified of anyone finding out that I'm gay..." he sighed, "there, I said it."

He took a deep breath in, then out, then exercised his tongue again. "I'm...gay," he said and blew out a breath then laughed like he couldn't believe he said it.

"Totally didn't notice," I calmly replied.

"Listen," said Kit. "When I kissed you, it was too good to be true, and then I became paranoid after that, and I admit I acted rashly and somehow got you expelled but you have to believe me that I have no idea what any of it has to do with drugs. You realize that that could have easily led to you being locked up right? That would be taking it too far, I would never do that to you."

"And yet you still got me expelled," I replied, it was hard to be angry when you were drunk. "I'm just mad that you didn't think you could just tell me that you like guys? What did you really think—"

"I thought I would lose you!"

"What you did isn't exactly keeping me."

"I know. But I was so confused and I didn't know what to do...you had kissed me back K! That's like every closeted gay guy's dream. For their straight crush—"

Kit shook his head. "Watching you follow that girl up here was a hard blow for me, and it made me realise that there's nothing I can do about it. I gotta move on, man."

I watched Kit struggle as he got the words out of his chest. When you really cared about someone, seeing them at their lows kicked you in the balls when you were mad at them. You didn't know which side to pick, your anger or them.

Of course I chose him.

Kit pushed my hand away before it could reach him. He got up quickly. "One way or another, I'll make it up to you."

•••

When I finally got back home, after driving like what felt slower than a tortoise, the first thing I did was take a shower.

Then I scavenged for orange juice in the dead quiet house and found it to feed my craving. I didn't get far.

It felt like my soul left my body for a second when I nearly walked into Rylan who was looking up at me. Jesus.

"You weren't in your room. I had a bad dream," he said as he lifted his hands in the air, waiting for me to carry him.

I lifted my little brother up and soothed him, telling him there was nothing to worry about and that he was safe.

I tucked him into Rylee's bed because he insisted, then held his hand until he was asleep again. Then I kissed them both and got back to my orange juice.

And the one other thing I was really failing to resist. I gave in anyway. I texted Julian.

Me:
hi

To show that I had enough self control, I nonchalantly put the phone away from me and focused on my orange juice.

I wasn't really mindful of it. (the phone) Nope...not at all. I tapped my fingers against my thigh. Yeah no, this was no big deal...I was just keeping the promise I'd made to text him. That's all.

Did you know that roses were red?

Yeah...violets are even blue...

And I almost threw my juice away when my phone lit up.

Oh boy.