Baby Daddies

Chapter Six: Baby Girl

A girl in a bright pink two-piece canonballed into the pool, sending a wave of water towards Cole. He covered his face and turned away just in time. He could hear Brent laughing over the music as he made his way towards the now soaking boy. The girl, Annie, popped her head up out of the water and apologized profusely.

"It's okay, it's okay," Cole assured her. She finally seemed to accept his assurance and swam back towards her other friends at the pool. Looking up at the string of lights, Cole's mind wandered. He hadn't expected to be a college party back in May. His summer plans then revolved only around eating, sleeping in, and hanging out with Naomi and Paul for three months. Instead, he had met a great guy named Noah, and now and even better one named Brent. Brent took a seat next to him, dangling his feet into the water as well. "What took ya so long?"

"All of the girls in there wouldn't get off of me," Brent replied, flashing his pearly whites. Cole shook his head and then placed it on the man's shoulder.

"As long as your back here, I don't really care who was on you. You're my man," he said with playful determination. He hooked his arm around Brent's bicep and held tight.

"That's right," he said softly, kissing the top of Cole's head. Cole almost melted. The man's skin smelled of chlorine and lotion. Cole nuzzled into it, his eyes closed for a moment. When he opened them, he spotted Annie staring at him strangely. She climbed out of the pool and wrapped a towel around her wet body, heading inside. She watched Cole until she was behind him.

"What's up with Annie?" Cole asked.

"Annie's here?" he said, turning to look at the boy. Cole nodded. "Huh... I don't know. I'm gonna grab another drink. Do you want one?"

"Yes, please," he said sweetly. Cole let go of Brent as he stood to leave. He twisted to watch Brent hurry inside. He debated diving back in the pool or not, and decided against it. He'd have to put on a ton of lotion if he did, and that took a while. Techno music pumped from the stereo, an interesting sound to mix in with the chatter of twenty-somethings. Five minutes had passed and Cole's mind wandered back to Brent. He'd been in there a while. Cole stood and crossed the cement to the kitchen tile. There was a crash that stopped him in his tracks. Inside the kitchen, Brent and Annie both looked at two shattered bottles of beer. Brent spotted Cole a second later.

"Congratulations, Brent!" Annie cried.

"Look, stop talking about it. Cole, can you please get my phone from my bag out there."

"Oh, uh... sure." Cole turned and made his way to the lawn chairs away from the pool. He grabbed the man's gym bag and dug around inside for his phone. Brent hadn't hit the button on the top of the iPhone, because it was still unlocked. Just as he grabbed it, there was a vibration. A new message from 'Baby Girl.' Cole's stomach sank. He opened it, looking over his shoulder to make sure no one was watching.

where r u?

annie said u were at a party with a guy

brent why r u hanging out with a fag?

hello?

Before he could read anymore, the battery ran out. His stomach clenched in anger and sadness. Who was 'Baby Girl' and where did she get off calling him a fag? The bitch couldn't even capitalize. "Cole?" he heard Brent call over his shoulder.

"Your phone died..."

"Oh, damn. Well, c'mon, I think it's time to leave."