F!ckings of a Pretty Boy ; sidemen

18) Three plus me

"About time."

Josh muttered under his breath when he finally spotted Ethan approaching from over the hill. He may have invited his friend to go shopping, but that didn't mean they had all day. It was a last minute drunken decision in the early morning to text Ethan. Heavy intoxication flooded his brain with nonstop sexual fantasies. Without consulting his conscience, he asked Ethan to join him on trip to the mall nearly an hour from campus. At the time Josh thought it may be a good way to flush some of these ideas out.

"Sorry I'm a few minutes late. Had to submit a paper and my internet was fucking with me." Ethan's explanation earned a cold, silent response. Instead his reflection in Josh's sunglasses stared blankly back at himself. A judgmental frown curved on Josh's lips just below the glasses. His leather jacket squeaked as he pushed his shoulders back. He simply turned in place and headed inside the parking garage. The awkwardness was palpable even from just passing by the two. Ethan tried to kill the silence by rambling about his professor from the class the paper was due. His voice only echoed louder bouncing off of the concrete walls. 

"Yo! Sick car!" Ethan interrupted himself when he saw the car unlock itself after Josh took out the key fob. 

"Thanks. It's my most prized possession. It's actually my third car I've owned." the other man finally reciprocated.

"Third?! What happened to the other two?"

"You've gotta switch it up every couple of years. The second was sold, but my first is still at home. I'm keeping that one 'til I die." Reminiscence twinkled in his eyes.

"Why?"

"Because it's the car my dad bought for me. Going shopping for it is my favorite memory with him. That was right before shit hit the fan." he lowly grumbled. The driver side door was yanked open.

"Is that you wanting me to ask what happened... or not?" Ethan paused from entering the car. The mood shifted back to grating and awkward.

"I don't know." He sat in his car so Ethan followed suit. The conversation hit a brick wall. Ethan was unable to move forward without Josh properly closing the open ended topic. "It's not that big of a deal anyway. Just me and my mom found out my dad was cheating on her. Nothing super unusual for a family."

"Uh, I mean, it's all relative I guess. Did they divorce after that?"

"No. My mom wanted to though."

"If it makes you feel any better, I never knew my dad." The move to open up about such a personal subject matter was a bold one. There used to be shame haunting Ethan about that, but Ethan has moved on beyond that now. It didn't need to be kept a secret anymore. If Josh was comfortable enough with Ethan to share that his dad was adulterous, Ethan should feel comfortable enough to share his own father related issues.

"Shit. Really? Do you ever wish you knew your dad?"

"No, fuck that fag." He buckled himself in. His eyes peered over to Josh who sat still as if he was waiting on Ethan to finish getting comfortable. But clearly there was more being discussed behind his green eyes. "Alright," Ethan awkwardly carried on. "Better get going. We've got a drive ahead of us."

"Don't worry I can get us there in thirty minutes or under." It was a claim Ethan wasn't sure to fear or to doubt. He soon learned it was one to fear. Once the car was swerving lanes like a game of Subway Surfers.

"Jesus. And you always drive this fast?" Josh nodded with a proud smirk. "You don't get pulled over at least once each time you drive?"

"No. Guess it's that white privilege you always hear about." he shrugged.