Plot Twist [TheDUFFcontest]

Plot Twist

Even if those two words make Nico feel as discriminated as they do, he can't help but snicker behind everyone's backs when he hears them.

"Hey man, no homo."

Isn't that the funniest thing?

And every time those words are spoken, he texts Violet.

HEY GIRL, NO HOMO. DON'T TOUCH ME! WE'RE. THE. SAME. BIOLOGICAL. GENDER. HEAVEN FORBID. 

And she likes to text back:

I WAS TOUCHED! WHAT DO I DO, I'VE BEEN TOUCHED BY THE HOMO??? 

It's rude, he knows, but it's their thing. Nico's pretty sure she doesn't really understand why he, the best player on the school's basketball team, finds it so funny when that happens. On the other hand, Nico doesn't understand why Violet, the twelfth-grade beauty, plays along with it. She even has her own version.

A BOY BEING MADE FUN OF FOR SPORTING AN ANDROGYNOUS LOOK??? what do we do now? he's obviously not his biological gender anymore. 

And he texts back:

Personally, I'm jealous. Who else can pull off those skinny-jeans? Obviously not us -- we ain't got those curves.

Perhaps they're even then.

The cold, solid truth is that the athletic star of the team is gay. It seems like an impossible position he's found himself in, and no doubt the other players wouldn't go within ten meters of him if they knew. That's fine. He doesn't care about them enough to tell them.

But Nico has a plan to come out to Violet on the last day of school. Two weeks. As his best friend, she deserves to know. And if it's too difficult for her to accept, then he'll be off to college just months afterwards. No risk. 

He doesn't mind so much that, walking out of those gym locker rooms with the cheerful high fives and "see you later"s, no one really knows who he is inside. He also doesn't mind so much that, when Violet meets him outside, he can hear everyone whispering behind them about their "relationship." But nonetheless, part of him is relieved that soon he'll be able to tell someone.

Two more weeks he has to bear being asked out by the poor girls who have been fooled by his facade, and two more weeks of being in the closet. He thinks it sad he can't bring it in him to explain to these girls the reason why he's rejecting them all, but for some reason, they all seem to believe that he's as straight as the next guy.

It's kind of fun though, fooling everyone into thinking he's the manly, heterosexual jock. But obviously it's an annoyance knowing that no one knows the "real him." How pitiful that sounds, he knows. 

So for the fourteen days, he's beyond twitchy. Every second closer to the last day makes him tap his foot faster, makes him run his fingers through his hair practically instinctively, makes his eyes flicker left and right more frequently than he means to.

And then... D-day. 

How is he supposed to do it? Nico ponders over this as he listens to Violet talk about her entire Spanish class skipping out.

"And you know what that kid James did? He freaking forgot his phone in the room! So he had to go back and, oh god, the poor kid had to run out before-- uh, hey. You okay?" She looks up at him with those long lashes and perfectly done cat-eye eyeliner.

He takes a deep breath, trying to prolong the inevitable. "Wanna come over today?"

"Sure."

Nico lets her finish her story. He can't just blurt it out in the middle of the walk home! That would be too... informal. Or something.

He waits by the door as Violet gets perfectly comfortable in his house, flinging her bag on the living room sofa and plopping down beside it, letting out a huge sigh. He shifts his weight onto his other leg and rubs his arm.

She turns her head towards him. "Are you gonna sit? What should we do now that we're free from that student prison?" She looks genuinely excited.

Here I go. "Violet, I have to tell you something. I'm gay and I'm sorry I didn't tell you before and no one else knows and I hope you'll accept me for who I am and yeah that's the truth." 

Well, that hadn't exactly been one, comprehensible sentence. But it worked? Maybe?

There's a pause that lasts way too long to be okay. Nico's breath is held, and his eyes closed shut and tight. He peeks open, hoping his friend's expression won't be shocked, or horrified, or both.

However, she's simply staring at him and blinking really slowly, appearing as neutral as ever.

(He's a little disappointed. No surprise at all?)

"I see," she finally breaks the silence. "Then I guess I should probably tell you something too."

Nico raises an eyebrow. "Oh, uh. Okay."

Without missing a beat, she confesses, "I identify as male. I'm transgender."

Now it's his turn to go blink. Blink. Blink.

The most intelligent response he can think of is, "Cool."

But in his head, he's thinking, Plot twist.