Bryce
With finals already over and the lease for our new apartment has now been signed, Ben and I started packing our stuff to move in. The other students either have already gone home or are partying to destress from finals. We were surprised when our nextdoor neighbors Gavin and Shu came by to visit.
"You guys moving out?" asked Gavin.
"Yeah," I said, "Ben and I are moving to an apartment off campus."
"Ah," said Shu, "Getting an apartment with thicker walls, more privacy."
Shu's comment made me drop a stack of books that I was holding. "Umm," I said, "What do you mean?"
Shu and Gavin chuckled and shared a knowing look.
"C'mon, Bryce," Gavin said, "We could hear you guys going at it."
"Don't worry," Shu said, "We won't tell anyone."
"I know we haven't talked much," Gavin said, "But we're going to miss you guys."
"You mean you're going to miss listening to their arguments." Shu said to Gavin.
Gavin laughed sheepishly and continued, "We wanted to give you a house warming gift and some advice since you two have a place of your own now."
Shu handed over a bonsai tree and bowed to us as we accepted it. "First, Never go to bed angry, and always be quick to forgive each other."
"Always talk things out," Gavin said, "Never bottle things up."
"And finally," Shu said, "Always make time for each other, Never neglect or take each other for granted."
"You two talk like you're in a relationship." Ben stated.
Gavin and Shu smiled, held each other's hand and gazed lovingly at each other.
"Since when?" I asked.
"A little bit before you two." answered Gavin.
"Well," Shu said, "We'll leave you be. If you guys need anything, feel free to visit us."
After they left, Ben said, "Well that was nice of them. I had no idea they were together."
"Same," I replied, "But aside from them and Techno, I don't want anyone else to know. Techno already suspected us and that bastard was going to find out sooner or later. Gavin and Shu, well we have no choice on that."
"Don't worry," Ben assured, "Besides, I'm glad we have people we can talk about this with."
"True," I said, "By the way, I need to go back to New Orleans after we're done moving. I promised my dad I would help him out for the holidays."
"Try not to miss me too much."
"Jerk" was all I could say to him.
Ben
After all our stuff was moved in, Bryce left for New Orleans and I had to do the unpacking and the decorating myself. Once everything was settled, I decided to go home and visit my family.
Once I entered my family home, I was tackled by a 60 pound seven year old.
"Ben!" shouted my baby sister, Billie, "You're home. Are you staying forever?"
"Billie," said my older brother, Bart, "We talked about this. Ben is at college. He will come home when he can."
"And why aren't you in college, Bart?" she asked.
I chuckled at her question and waited for his response.
"Because," he answered, "I'm taking care of you."
"Mommy and Daddy take care of me," said Billie, "All you do is play with me."
"Oh ok," Bart said laughing at how sassy the princess is getting, "I guess when you have your next tea party, I won't bring any snacks."
Bart and I have always treated Billie like she was a little princess, so much that we actually call her "the Princess".
"Where are mom and dad?" I asked.
"Work," Bart answered, "Wrapping things up before the holidays." He turned to Billie, "With Ben here, why don't you get your tea set out and we can all have a tea party."
"Yay!!" she shouted as she ran upstairs to her room.
Once she was gone, Bart asked me, "So how are things with your new guy?"
I grinned and answered, "We're dating now."
"Congrats. I hope he's good to you."
"Speaking of which," I said, bringing out my phone, "I need to call him and see if he made it home ok."
"Where's his home?" Bart asked.
"New Orleans," I responded, "He left around noon so he should be there or close by."
I dialed Bryce's number and after three rings he picked up.
"Hey," he greeted, "What's up?"
"Just here at home," I replied, "Miss me yet?"
"Jerk," he said, "Don't get on my nerves."
"When did I do that?" I asked, "I was just asking."
"Then my answer is no," he answered, "We saw each other earlier today. How can I miss you?"
"True," I said, "We just saw each other earlier and I was wondering if you were home by now."
"Worried about me?"
"Worried and possessive," I replied, "When it comes to you that is."
"I'm not falling for your sweet talk," Bryce said, "No matter how many times you try."
"But you've fallen for my mouth," I said, "And you never complain."
"I told you," he said, "I'm not falling for it. Your words fall on deaf ears."
"I wasn't talking about my words," I answered, "I was talking about how my mouth drives you crazy when I use it on your body."
Bryce laughed and said, "Fuck off, faggot."
He disconnected the call and I laughed, knowing him as I do, he's blushing and secretly missing me.
Bryce
I hung up with Ben after he tried to make me admit to him that I actually miss him. Which I do, however I was not going to admit it to him.
The entire drive home, I was wanting him here with me. But another part of me was happy to be away from him. Not in the sense that I can't stand to be around him. Far from it. I was needing a break all to myself. After everything I had been through and experienced this past semester, I needed to spend some time alone.
Since I agreed to come home for the holidays, my parents will have me working at our family hotel which will be a good distraction for me. I needed some time away to deal with this major change in my life and come to terms with it. As much as I was grateful for all the support I had with Techno, Gavin, and Shu, I knew that I had to work out some issues.
I still had a deep hatred for gay people, and even though Ben has helped me overcome a big part of it. I had to overcome this by myself. I knew my prejudice was wrong and that it is a part of the trauma I had endured from my childhood. But I felt that I was hiding from all that pain and Ben was my shield. I knew that I must overcome this myself because I won't have Ben by my side 24/7. All the love and support he gave me helped me heal and even though I won't admit it to anyone, especially him, it gave me the strength and courage to face this trial alone.
A knock on my window interrupted my train of thought and I saw who was waiting for me.
"Are you coming in, or you gonna be in your car the whole break?" asked my father.
"I'm just destressing, pa," I replied, "Finals were stressful."
"And here I thought my little man went crazy from studying too hard."
I exited the car and took my bag out, laughing and joking with my dad. My winter break started officially and I bravely march on to face my personal challenges head on while I'm here.