Apples to Oranges (7 page)

“No. Mike was right. I don’t know him.”
Brandon
shuffled from side to side with his
hands stuffed deep inside his jeans pockets. “It’s just that…” He stopped. “I
don’t even know how to say it.”

“Spit it out. You don’t make any sense.” Jace was getting more
pissed as every minute passed. First this guy came on to him and they’d done
shit together and then he pretended like nothing happened. To top things off
and insult to injury,
Brandon
copped an attitude whenever Jace was around. It wasn’t fair. He’d done nothing
to deserve the crap that was being tossed at him.

Brandon
closed his eyes and Jace watched as his hands balled into fists as he pulled
them from his pockets. “I fucking like you, okay,” he nearly yelled. “And every
time I think about you and him together, it pisses me off.”

Silence sluiced between them and for that moment, each looked at
the other and neither spoke one word or moved.

How was he supposed to react to that? Jace was beyond stunned
and when he moved to where
Brandon
was standing,
he went out on a limb and grabbed
Brandon
by the arm. The street wasn’t anyplace to have this conversation and thinking
quickly, he pulled
Brandon
towards him. “We need to talk, but not here. Follow me.”

They sat in the middle of a nearby field just off the road and
when Jace looked up at the stars in the night sky, he felt strangely calm. “It
isn’t easy, is it?”

“It was until I met you,”
Brandon
said. “It’s been fucked ever since.”

“Gee, thanks. That makes me feel really special.”

“It isn’t like that and it isn’t you, it’s me. I have a problem.
From the first day we met, something clicked inside me. I knew I kinda liked
guys, but no one ever left an impression on me. It’s fucking strange, man. But
when I’m around you… and when we did what we did, it felt good.”

“Of course it felt good,” Jace said, laughing a little.

“No. I mean, yeah that would feel good.”
Brandon
’s tone lightened slightly. He turned
to Jace and smiled. “It’s hard to explain and I’m not the best at expressing my
feelings. I’m an asshole, remember?”

“I don’t think you are. Confused, maybe, but you’re not an
asshole.”

“Aren’t you scared that people will find out about you?”

“Of course I am. I’m not ready to come out. I am, however, sick
of hiding. It’s a hard spot to be in,” Jace admitted.

“Did you feel that between us? I mean when we first met. There
was something.”

“I thought you were pretty darned cute.” It felt strange to
admit that to
Brandon
,
yet it was liberating at the same time. “And a little strange.”

“That’s me in a nutshell, cute and strange.”

“You do realize that there are no rules to this.” Jace turned to
Brandon
as he
spoke. “We do the best we can. That’s the only way to survive. Life isn’t
easy.”

“Tell me about it. It’s been downhill for me for the past two
years. I totally never expected any of this when I moved here.”

“
Brandon
.”
Jace reached over and pressed one finger against the boy’s mouth to stop him
from speaking. Never had he felt as bold as he did at this moment. “Kiss me.”
He leaned over to
Brandon
and slid one arm up
around
Brandon
’s
shoulders.
Brandon
didn’t pull away from him and when their eyes met, Jace readied himself for
what was about to happen.

Their tongues merged as did their lips and it was there, that
spark, that slight jolt of electricity that signalled their attraction to each
other. When
Brandon
broke the kiss, he grinned and pressed his nose against Jace’s. “Jesus, I never
knew that kissing could be so awesome.”

“Same here.” It had been good with Preston, but nothing compared
to kissing
Brandon
.
Jace fell back on the grass and pulled
Brandon
down on top of him. He revelled in the weight of the guy on top of him and once
again it was as if they were back inside the tent. He wanted all that and so
much more.

“There’s something about you. I can’t explain it, but all I
wanna do is kiss you again.”

“Then what’s stopping you?” asked Jace. His arms entwined around
Brandon
’s
waist. They kissed again.

****

Brandon
was so hard. In fact, he wouldn’t have been surprised if the fly on his jeans
busted wide open. He pushed up from Jace and ran one hand back through his
hair. “You’re really something,” he said.

“You do pretty well yourself.”

“I need to ask you something.”

“Shoot. Ask away.”

“Are you messing with that guy,
Preston
?”
Brandon
had to
know the truth.

“Nope. We’re just friends…well, kinda.”

“Good. I mean, I’m glad to know that there isn’t anything
between you two.”

“I should head home. Mom will be wondering where I am and I
don’t want to worry her. She has enough problems of her own without me adding
to them. I’m glad that we talked and I’d like to see you again, away from
school.”

“How would that work?”
Brandon
didn’t want people to get suspicious about them.

“We’ll make it work. That’s if you want to.” Jace stood up and
brushed the ass of his jeans off. “We’re friends anyway. It wouldn’t be strange
if people saw us together. It’s best to not overthink things.”

Brandon
debated that point for a moment. “I guess not.”

“You don’t sound so sure.”

“It freaks me out a little. That’s my problem and not yours.” He
pushed up from the ground. “I’ll deal with it and yeah, I’d like to see you
again too.”

“Friday night, drop by my place. Be there around eight. You know
where I live?”

Brandon
nodded.

“See ya then.”

Brandon
watched as Jace walked across the field to the road. He’d gone and done it now.
He was in way over his head and he damned well knew it.

Chapter Five

The next day at school, Jace couldn’t help but stare every time
he spotted
Brandon
between classes. They shared two that day and instead of paying attention to
his work, he studied
Brandon
instead. They didn’t act any differently towards each other and when
Preston
stopped by his locker at the end of the day, he
did his best to brush him off, since he had other things on his mind.

“We can go park somewhere,”
Preston
suggested. “I know a few places that would give us privacy.”

“Not today.” Jace’s reply was curt. “I’m busy with some other
stuff.”

“Oh, okay. Another time, then?”

“Sure. Sounds good.” He wasn’t even paying attention to what
Preston was saying and when he spotted
Brandon
walking up the hall towards them, his heart skipped a beat and then some.

“I need to speak to you,”
Brandon
said. He pushed his way between Jace and
Preston
.
“In private.”
Brandon
looked back at
Preston
over his shoulder. “No offense meant.”

“None taken.”
Preston
backed
away from them and made his way back down the now deserted hallway.

“What was that about?” Jace asked.

“In here, now.”
Brandon
grabbed him by the hand and pulled him into the boys’ bathroom across from his
locker. Once inside,
Brandon
pushed him up against the wall, pressing his body against Jace’s.

“It’s a good thing nobody’s in here.” Jace smirked and felt his
cock stir.

Brandon
kissed him hard. “I needed to do that,” he explained. “I couldn’t wait until
Friday.”

Jace wanted
Brandon
to kiss him
again and when he moved in to make that known,
Brandon
pulled away from him. “Just in case
someone comes in.”

“Of course.” He straightened his shirt and couldn’t hide his
amused look, given the whole situation.

“I’ll see you Friday. I just had to get you alone even if it was
only for a couple minutes.”
Brandon
walked past him to the door. “You know, even if people did find out, I don’t
think it would bother me all that much.” He shrugged and left.

****

When
Brandon
walked into the trailer, his mom was sitting in the kitchen. As usual, she was
on the phone and when she pointed to the table, he noticed an envelope. “It’s
for you,” she said. “From your dad.”

He didn’t want anything from his dad, not a phone call, text or
this. Still, he grabbed it and headed to his bedroom without saying anything
and when a knock fell on his door, he sat back and braced himself for anything
his mom was about to say.

“He called today,” she said. “Your dad. He said he’s texted you
a few times and emailed, but you’re not responding to him.”

“For once he tells the truth.”
Brandon
leaned back on the bed.

“Your dad isn’t a bad man and while I don’t agree with many
things he’s done in his life, he’s still your dad.”

“He cheated on you and he left us. I’m sorry if I can’t just get
over that as easily as you did,” he snapped. He didn’t need this lecture from
her. Not now and not ever.

“You know the situation. We kept nothing from you. Your dad
wasn’t happy and neither was I. He cheated and you and I both know the details.
We didn’t keep anything from you. He’s moved on with his life and so have I.”

He’d moved on. That much was obvious. “How can you defend him? I
don’t understand him or you. Aren’t you mad that he left you for another
woman?”

She looked to the floor and the back up at him. “Things happen
and people change. I always suspected your dad was a cheater. I wasn’t
surprised.”

“You knew about him? Why did you marry him?” None of it made any
sort of sense.

“I married him because I loved him and at first I didn’t know
about his…infidelities.
 
It’s okay,
Brandon
. Like I said, I’ve
moved on and so has he. You need to try and move past it. Like it or not, your
dad is a decent man.”

“A man who lies and cheats isn’t a good man. Are you finished?”
He didn’t want to listen to anything else she had to say.

“I am, but I want you to talk to him.” She left without saying
anything more.

He opened the envelope with some reluctance and withdrew the
letter inside and read the words slowly, taking them in. It wasn’t much.
Basically it was his dad filling him in about his life and asking about his.
When he’d finished, he tucked it away. It didn’t sit well with him that he
judged his dad. But it wasn’t really about that. It was about the cheating and
lies. That’s what he kept telling himself. Anyway, there were much better
things to think about like Jace and Friday. He had some ideas on what they’d do
and each one made him smile more than the last.

It was crazy that he was so open with Jace. It was like Jace
could see every part of him and whenever they were together it was like nothing
else mattered. All day at school he’d wanted nothing more than to touch him and
kiss him. For once he felt close to someone. It felt damned good.

****

“My goodness, look at you.”

“Aunt Pat? What are you doing here?” asked Jace, when he walked
into the house and saw his mom’s sister standing in the hall with one hand on
her hip and a potholder covering her other hand. She hadn’t been around for
months.

“I decided to come by and cook supper. I’ve been so caught up
with work and my own life that until now I haven’t had much chance to think
about anyone else. How have you been, sweetie?”

“Not bad, I guess. School’s kept me going.” He glanced in the
living room wondering where his mom was.

“She’s taking a shower. I told her to.”

“She needs a little encouragement at times.”

“Or a kick in the butt. Are you really okay?”

Jace removed his jacket and kicked off his sneakers. “I’m fine.”
He thought about
Brandon
and smiled. He still felt their kiss. “I’m glad you’re here.”

****

The rest of the week flew by and by Friday night
Brandon
was ready to jump
out of his skin as he drove to Jace’s house. His mom had given him the car for
the weekend since she decided to stay at a friend’s house.

Jace met him at the door and once outside,
Brandon
slipped his hand into Jace’s and
squeezed. “I thought the time would never pass. I’ve got the place to myself
and I thought we could spend time together alone. Just you and me.”

“There’s nothing I’d rather do.” Jace followed him to the car.
“Your mom’s away?”

“At a friend’s for the weekend. She left today.”

“Lucky you.”

“Lucky us.”

“I was just about to add that. We haven’t really been alone
since that first night.” Jace got in the car and shut the door.

“I must have acted like an ass.” He’d been dead drunk and while
he remembered most of it, the finer details were vague to him.

“Naw.”

“Tonight’s about you and me.”
Brandon
reached over and squeezed Jace’s leg.
“You look fucking great. I like your hair that way. It’s sexy.”