“He’s definitely gay.”
“Oh. Funny.”
“Funny?”
“Not funny ha-ha, but, you know, funny like my girlfriend’s other boyfriend is gay.”
“Shut up,” she said. “Anyway. I just wanted you to know.”
“Great. I’ll alert my mom. She’ll have some bibles mailed over ASAP.”
“It’s nothing to joke about, Clark.”
“Sorry. I think it’s great he told you. Sounds like he needed someone to talk to.”
“I guess so,” she said. “He asked his parents for a pool.”
“He goes outside? I’m confused.”
“No. But he says he’s going to.”
“Crazy,” he said. “But not like crazy crazy. You know what I mean.”
“It was sort of sad,” she said. “He told me he isn’t sure he’ll ever tell his parents. Says it’s a nonissue.”
“He’s not wrong, is he? If he never leaves the house, what’s it matter?”
“It’s not just about that though, right?”
“I don’t know. If I never left my house again and I didn’t already have you, I don’t think being straight or gay would matter at all. Well, outside of my Google searches.”
“Gross.”
“Sorry.”
“It’s bigger than that,” she said. “Maybe that’s part of it. Of what’s wrong with him. He doesn’t know how to be himself because he thinks it doesn’t matter who he is. This could factor hugely into his social anxiety.”
“Lisa, you meet this guy once and the second you show up again, he’s coming out to you. That doesn’t sound like someone who isn’t being himself, does it?”
“No,” she answered. “That’s what makes it more confusing. He’s a little anxious, sure, but otherwise, he’s like us. Easy to talk to. Funny. Really funny, actually. I just don’t know why he can’t deal with anything out here. I think he’s as capable as anyone.”
“Obviously not,” Clark said. “But you think being his friend is the best way to help him?”
“That’s the plan,” she said. “Start with me and then eventually bring you into the mix. Show him what he’s missing out here.”
“Oh, is that right? I’m part of this now?”
“Only if you want to be. You said yourself that you’re getting tired of the guys from the team.”
“So tired,” he said. “Everything is such a pissing contest with those morons.”
“Well, there you go.”
“You know, you could probably just make something up for your essay and still get that scholarship,” he said.
“I know that. But, I want to help him. It’s not just about the scholarship anymore.”
“You promise?”
“I promise,” she said. “Give me a few more weeks with him. I don’t want to overwhelm him and since you’ll probably dethrone me as his new best friend, I’d like to get to know him a little better.”
“I am very fun,” he said.
“Let me guess. Right now you are wearing pajama pants, probably nothing else, and there’s a bag of Doritos somewhere visible in the room. Maybe even a doughnut or two.”
“Amazing. How do you do it?”
“Magic,” she said. “What’s your sister doing?”
“Same thing. We’ve been playing video games for, like, five hours. I’m not proud, Lisa. But, also, I am proud?”
“It’s funny,” she said. “The second I start hanging with a dorky recluse, you turn into one. What is this life?”
? ? ?
The next day, Lisa was happy to find Ron’s car in the driveway. She didn’t like him much, but her mom did. And she was a lot happier when he was home. It sucked that they were the way they were: one of those couples that’s either all over each other or at each other’s throats. But some people are just wired that way, Lisa thought. And she was glad she wasn’t one of them.
Around lunchtime, she was looking over some history notes when her phone rang. It was Solomon.
“Didn’t I just talk to you a few hours ago?” she answered.
“What happened last night?”
“We watched the best movie ever and you came out to me.”
“Yes, yes,” he said. “Being out is exhausting. I just woke up like an hour ago.”
“And what have you accomplished? Because me? I’ve already run two miles, written a book report, and started studying for a test.”
“Yeah. I spent twenty minutes watching a documentary on eels until I got too creeped out to keep going.”
“Okay . . . so, you’re having a productive day, that’s good.”
He laughed harder than she’d expected. It was a great laugh—that kind where you can actually hear the ha-ha-ha’s if you listen closely enough.
“Yeah . . . umm . . . did you know the lifespan of an eel is about eighty-five years?”
“That’s horrifying. Solomon, did you call to invite me over?”
“Maybe.”
“Go ahead. Just do it. Don’t be shy.”
“Are you serious?” he asked.
“If you want to be friends, you’re going to have to do the things that friends do. They call each other up and invite each other over. You’re halfway there.”
“Fine. Do you?”
“Do I what?”