Touch me Not

7. encounters

My phone had died after my last message to Gabriel, which meant that I had another reason to be tense.

I sighed, wondering when this ridiculous nervousness had taken such a hold of me.

"Adam?"

My cheeks grew hot as Mr. McCain caught me unaware for a second time that day. Nonetheless, I was relieved to see him.

"Hi, Mr. McCain."

"Please call me Cameron. Mr. McCain makes me sound ancient."

I couldn't help but smile. "Fine. Hi, Cameron."

"Much better. Sorry I'm late, by the way. A student wanted to talk after the last class. Apparently, you all think I'm in need of several assistants."

I wasn't sure how to respond. Obviously, he could pick and choose, which meant that I couldn't afford to screw up.

Cameron let out a soft chuckle. "I didn't mean to make you nervous. I'll just grab some stuff from my office and then we can fetch some food on the way if that's okay with you?"

"Sure, sounds good." I wasn't hungry, but who knew how long we were going to stay at his studio. Gabriel had football practice, so it wasn't as if I had anything important to do.

Cameron rummaged through his bag. "I hate keys, I always forget where I put them."

I watched with amusement as he almost emptied his leather portfolio before finding the keys in his back pocket.

"Probably should have started with the pockets," he said with a shrug.

I was still grinning in secret when he opened the office door to grab his jacket and a few items on his desk.

"Okay, finally. Let's go." He locked the door behind me and pointed at his keys. "Remind me that they're in my bag if I forget."

I wanted to laugh but nodded instead.

On the way out, Cameron asked me some questions about my interest in photography, but we trailed away to other topics as soon as we sat in the car. He was easy to talk to, the conversation ran so smoothly that I was surprised by how much we shared.

I had never expected to hear about his family.

"They're down in North Carolina. I left straight after high school and haven't really been back since. They're kind enough, though." He laughed softly as if he'd remembered something. "They're still waiting for me to become an honest man."

"They want you to marry?"

"Mom's real churchy."

I smiled at the expression. My parents never cared much for church. They believed in actions rather than conviction. They had been great throughout my childhood, making sure I always had someone to talk to regardless of the issue. I figured that was the reason I told them about my sexuality so early.

"I love my parents. But it's nice to live away from home."

"So, a good childhood then?" he asked.

"Yeah." I thought about Gabriel. If not for him, my teens would have been very different. Smiling, I felt proud of my boyfriend. "I had some trouble with bullies when I was younger, but my best friend, Gabriel, sorted that out."

"I guess this Gabriel is important to you as well."

"Yes, he made sure those guys never touched me again."

"That's definitely true friendship," Cameron replied, turning left at an intersection.

"It is." True friends. A strange emptiness briefly settled in my gut as I thought about Gabriel's reaction the day I'd told him about my feelings. Thrown away, so easily. Years of friendship fading away into nothing—as if we hadn't shared anything special.