The Dating Game

FIFTEEN

"No."

I never thought the day would come when I would say no to my mother without getting the wooden spoon, but alas, here we are. I successfully denied her and made it to my room without any discipline.

She can't make me turn a blind eye to my dad's despicable behavior.

In a moment of weakness, I glance down at my phone, watching the screen for a sign telling me what I should do next. I could call Chase and maybe distract myself from all of this with his ridiculous personality. Or I could take Naomi out to the park for a few hours and just watch her interact with other kids—it could give me a chance to regain the smallest bit of innocence back.

But then my phone begins to ring, and I have my decision made for me.

"Hey," I answer vulnerably, awaiting the voice on the other end.

"Hey," Isaac says just as dejected. "Can you talk?"

"I'm all yours for as long as you need me."

"Great." He sighs. "First, I need to tell you some bad news."

Awesome. Just the thing I want to hear from my best friend who hasn't been nice to me after we fought.

"Some drama happened at the house, so I'm moving in with Sonia over here. Permanently."

What? "Permanently? You're really not coming back?"

"I'll visit, Mich, I promise. It's just," he pauses. "Not for a while, okay?"

I sigh. "Okay. Can I ask why?"

"Well, that's the second thing I need to talk to you about." A moment of quiet passes along through the call before he speaks again. "I'm sorry."

I don't answer.

"I'm sorry for treating you so badly before I left, and then for springing this onto you out of nowhere. The truth is, I've been going through a lot of shit lately and it scared me, so I was taking it out on you. And I know it's not okay, and I understand if you hate me but..."

"But?"

"Michelle, I think I'm gay."

Oh.

Oh. Oh, shit.

"Hello?" Isaac's voice quivers on the other line. "God, please say something."

"Isaac, it's okay. It's okay if you're gay, you don't have to be scared," I tell him truthfully. "I support you no matter what, and I'm always going to be here for you. I promise."

I can hear him take a few deep breaths before responding. "I love you. Thank you."

"I love you too, Isaac. Always."

Wednesday, January 10th

It's funny that I have something to look forward to every day at school now. Well, maybe look forward to is a stretch—it's more like I have something to expect now. Before, the only thing I expected at school was Isaac to be next to me the entire time, but now that he won't be coming back for a while, I guess it's Chase's turn to take his place.

And as if on cue, I spot his tall figure leaning up against the brick wall of the school entrance as I walk up to meet him. I realize the dread I used to feel whenever I saw him isn't as apparent anymore. Now, after fighting so hard for his forgiveness, it seems to be replaced with a new kind of relief.

"You're late," he tells me, his usual cocky smirk stretching across his lips when he makes eye contact with me.

I almost smile at the sight of his grin, but then I realize I'll never hear the end of it if I do. "Only by, like, two minutes."

"Six, actually," he corrects me, taking a glance at his phone and showing it to me.

"Aw, you know what time I get to school?" I tease him, taking his hand and holding it.

"Yeah. Every day I count down the seconds until I have to suffer the wrath of a particularly stubborn troll," he says with an all too cheerful smile.

I give him my familiar sarcastic smile before snatching my hand out of his as a result of his failed attempt at a joke. But when I walk away, he follows idly behind me, meeting back up with me at my locker as usual.

"So, are you cool with me touching you?" Chase asks me slowly, almost kind of awkward, as I open my locker.

No way. Is Chase Matthews giving me the bare minimum and asking if I'm cool with being touched? Honestly, I probably shouldn't be this surprised, but either way, this new Chase is kind of refreshing. It's nice to be treated like a sentient human being for once.

"Why are you even asking? It's not like I have any real choice."

"That's not true." He averts his eyes from me, something I wasn't sure he was actually capable of doing. "I just mean... Well, I don't want to..."

Oh my God. Is Chase getting embarrassed right now? This is priceless.