Melting For You (#PenYourPride)

Homo House Party

"Ready?" Ryan asked, his hand resting on the door. The two were outside, the dark violet-gray sky above them. The house itself was almost huge, looking like a cabin with its wooden reddish-brown and tawny exterior. Makato nodded, and Ryan swung open the door. The two stepped inside.

It was a simple house, with the living room in front and a kitchen behind that. A staircase wrapped around to the second level of the house, adding to the cozy ambiance.

"Hey - Ryan!" A sudden voice called out. A much bigger and much taller sophomore poked his head from the counters, smiling brightly. The two clapped each other on the back.

"Hey man. Makato, you know Leo, right?" Ryan asked, turning to the much more introverted boy.

Makato smiled weakly and nodded. "Yep. Hey Leo."

Leo's hand suddenly came on his back, hard. "Hey man! Think I've seen you around. Anyway, the guys are coming soon to help set up the drinks and the guests should get here soon. You two are pretty early, mind setting up the barbeque?"

Ryan nodded and gestured for Makato to follow him like the shorter boy was a child. They came out the back where a dark black grill stood, dirt and dust crawling around the outside. "Here, you go inside and get a dish rag or something to clean it, and I'll figure out how to start it up."

Makato nodded awkwardly, unsure why Ryan hadn't asked him what he wanted to do. But it didn't matter too much-

"Alright," He nodded, and headed into the house. By now people had started to come to the party, mainly more popular people, gossiping and listening to the dance music coming from the radio near the fireplace. The entire house suddenly felt more alive, although Makato wasn't sure if he liked that or not. A lot of people seemed to be hovering around the living room, sitting on the couches and laughing about something. There was a sudden blur of people standing in circles. A couple eyed him, then looked away. Makato cleared his throat and looked for Leo. He saw the blonde boy chatting with more of the popular clique, including a redheaded girl and a lanky but shorter boy.

"Do you know where the rags or some towels are? Ryan and I are trying to clean up the grill."

"Ah, sure! They should be in the broom closet near the bathroom on your left." He pointed with his red solo cup. Makato turned his head and walked back down the hallway he had just come through. Tile blended into carpet as he kept his head down skirting around groups of people. Their wavering eyes all seemed to be on him, despite his attempts to hide. He prayed for the crowd to thin out, and the gazes to stop.

Makato finally came to a small wooden broom closet and grabbed a small rag. The sooner he could get back to Ryan, the less other people would bother him, hopefully. He turned around and instantly crashed into someone. They both stumbled and it turned out to be somebody he knew, Andrew Ackerson. The redhead managed to catch himself, but Makato hit his chin, hard, against the flooring. He looked up just in time to see Andrew stare at him briefly with a certain look - a mix of alarm and sudden disgust - before walking away.

Makato rubbed at his chin, face burning. He could hear Andrew talking to another person, presumably his girlfriend Sanna.

"You good?" He heard her ask.

"Yeah, just ran into that guy."

"Isn't he the one who has a crush on Ryan?"

"Yeah."

An awkward pause.

"Oh."

He didn't need to hear anymore. He suddenly felt like crying, and he stumbled to get up, almost body-checking another guest. He tilted his arm out of the way but ended up smacking it against someone else.