A passenger stared at the Metro ticket machine with dull eyes, holding up the line. Blue hmphed, wondering if it would have been easier to drive across the city to the Kimpton. Instead, they opted for the Metro train, deciding it would be easier and cheaper, and at the end of the weekend, they could drive home with Andrew. It would have been easier if they could have driven to the hotel with Andrew and his team, but with the band having a concert the prior night, Blue opted to meet him at the hotel the following morning.
Standing behind the posh, older man was infuriating. They tapped their toes on the tile floors, hoping the man would hear and quit hogging up the lone. The man seemed to be trapped in his own head, preparing himself to select one of the options before opting for none and going back to staring at the screen in utter confusion.
Rolling their eyes at him, Blue was prepared to speak up when they noticed him staring at the person's screen beside him. He watched and tried to press the same buttons as the lady next to him, but he missed the next step and was stuck at stage one again. Blue suddenly felt bad, realizing the man most likely didn't know how to use the subway.
"Excuse me," they spoke as they stepped up to the man's side so he could see them, "do you need some help?"
"What?" he asked, his voice gravelly and his gaze pointed at them.
"You've been standing here for, like, ten minutes. You're holding up the line. Do you need help or not?"
"It's been forever since I've taken the train."
"Move," they commanded, stepping in front of him to show him how to select a ticket and pay for it.
"Make it two," he demanded.
"Why? Have a friend in the bathroom?" they questioned as he inserted his card in the machine.
"No. Ticket's on me for the help." He handed Blue the ticket and followed them to the platform. "I had been standing there for a while, and no one seemed to help me. Thank you for your kindness."
"Oh..." Blue whispered. "Yeah, no problem."
"So what is a young lady such as yourself doing here all alone? Isn't it dangerous to ride the Metro alone?"
Blue sighed, sagging their shoulders. It was common association that women riding trains alone was considered dangerous. Blue tended to give men the benefit of the doubt, having ridden the subway multiple times alone. It was no longer a fear for them, and if they ever noticed something suspicious, they tended to walk up to a group of women and act like they've known the group for the longest time before silently asking them to play along while the creeps left. Every time so far had worked. They prayed the day would never come where someone turned them away.
This time, though, they sighed for a different reason.
"Sorry, did I say something wrong?"
"No, not really."
"Can I ask what then? I'd hate to offend you after you helped me."
Blue smiled. "You're not offending me. Everyone makes the common misconception. I'm just not a girl, so..."
"Ah, my apologies, young man," he nodded without a bash of an eye.
"Not a man either," they quizzically responded.
"There's a third option?"
"Way more than three."
"Then what are you?"
"Agender."
"Bless you."
"Not a sneeze," they deadpanned. "It's just a word that means I'm gender neutral."
"So you can be something other than male or female," he spoke in awe.
"It's called non-binary. The binary genders are male and female."
"What if you were both?"
"Bigender."
"Is that binary since you're both?"
"No, you have to identify solely as male or female in order to be binary. There's a gender called gender fluid where some people identify as a male at one moment and then female another, but since they don't identify as only one gender every day, they're non-binary."
"Huh," he nodded. "I remember there being a time when I thought I was a woman, but a part of me knew that wasn't the whole truth. I knew I was a male, but I had a feminine side to myself that I knew I had to hide from the world. If my father ever saw me as someone who wasn't a man's man, I would be disowned and ruined."
"I'm so sorry," Blue murmured.
"At least you don't worry about it," he smiled. "It's nice to know the next generation is able to be themselves."
It had been a long time since a stranger spoke such kind words to them about their identity and who they were. It was comforting to know there were still people in the world who were kind enough to reassure people like themself that who they were was valid.
"I'm Blue," they said, holding out their hand for a shake as the train rolled up.
"Jared," he nodded, shaking their hand as well. "You never did tell me why you were by yourself."
"Heading to see my partner. My band is performing at one of his parties. I would have come with him, but we had a concert last night, so I'm heading up a day early to spend some time with him. He hates these parties, so I want to help ease him into it."
When Galactic Cannibalism found out they were going to be performing at the Blue Moon movie premiere party, everyone was ecstatic. Finally they were going to be taking the next step, a larger step, towards stardom. It was a dream come true, and they all could hardly wait.
"You're in a band?" the man questioned.
"Yeah."
"What are you called?"
"Galactic Cannibalism."
The man stared at them in confusion.
"It's when a galaxy eats another galaxy," they simplified.
"And your band is going to eat all the competition?" he smirked.
They snickered. "I like you. But the band is only temporary. I want to become a famous musician and tour the world and then settle down when I'm middle aged in order to open a music school that's affordable to low income families. It was difficult for me to pursue music as a child, but I never gave up trying. I don't want some family to give up on trying just cause they can't afford it."
"Quite a noble profession," the man spoke. "I admire that. I wish I could have done what I wanted to do as a child."
"And what's that?"
"Be an architect. I love the layout of buildings, and I have wanted to design my own ever since I was a child. I used to make 3D replicas, but they were always turned down by my father."
"I'm so sorry."
"I should have known," he said, shaking his head. "Ever since I was born, I knew my place in the family. One day I would take over the company, become the next president, and do stocks and trades for the rest of my life."
"Sounds boring," Blue stated, sucking in their lips in embarrassment before sheepishly glancing up at the chuckling man.
"It can be, but it's business. It's all supposed to be boring."
"Not if it's something you love to do. If you do what you love, it's not even work anymore," they countered with a smile.
"Yes," he nodded. "It's why I do architectural work on the side. It may not be much, but it's at least something to do."
"Hey, who knows? Maybe one day you can stick it to your father and use your business knowledge to open up your own architect company." They scanned the man from head to toe and nodded. "Yeah, I can totally picture you doing that."
Jared laughed as he reached into his wallet. Pulling out his business card, he handed it to Blue. "Take this. When you're ready to open your music school, give me a call. I'd love to be the one to design your school for you."
"That would be awesome!"
Before they could pull out their phone to enter the contact, their eyes glued onto the full name on the card. "Jared Parker," they whispered.
"Yes?" he questioned.
"Oh!" they exclaimed, laughing nervously. "Nothing. Just reading aloud."
Jared quirked an eyebrow but didn't say anything more as he began to stare out the window directly in front of him.
Blue didn't know what to do. They couldn't believe they'd met Andrew's rotten brother on the subway. A man who was vile to his brother, who loathed his family. The man Andrew hated for as long as he could remember. Though Blue never fully understood why, only that the two were never close in the first place.
What was it that caused the two to not be close? Luke knew the two didn't get along, as did Martin and Marcy. The two were awfully quiet and worried to tell Andrew about the flowers in the first place. Whatever happened couldn't have been good.
But he sent flowers. Flowers to celebrate one's victory surely should have been some sort of a olive branch. Maybe he wanted to call a truce. Maybe Jared was ready to bury the hatchet and start over as brothers. The two would embrace, staring into each other's eyes as they admitted they loved each other and were happy to be in one another's lives, for real this time.
Blue shook their head and groaned. That would never happen, and they weren't sure if they wanted it to. It would have been far too out of character, and slightly creepy since they were brothers.
Blue did hope that Jared was ready to end their feud and take the first step towards accepting each other. In the short time they knew him, Blue thought he was a sweet man. They were willing to advocate their reunion if it helped. Maybe burying the hatchet was exactly what Andrew needed in order to open up and embrace a new sense of comfort. Maybe it would help him finally be happy, or at the very least, embrace peace.
"Your name," they whispered, and Jared turned to face them. "It reminds me of Andrew Parker. I heard he just won the Lammy Award."
"He is a garbage author," Jared stated, his voice suddenly rough with a snarl. "His books are nothing more than an imaginative land where he goes to embrace a false reality that will never happen."
"Well, gee, I sure hope not. I mean, acceptance for the LGBT community? How horrible," they tsked at him.
Jared's eyes widened for a brief moment before he glanced at his feet.
"You've never even read his books, have you?"
"I don't need to read his books to know he's a horrible man. He should do what he was born to do."
"Like you?" they quipped, and Jared quirked an eyebrow. "Work in an office. Follow family rules. You really want him to be miserable like yourself? Why don't you focus your anger on yourself rather than someone else. Maybe that way you'll be able to focus on it and learn to let go."
"Now stopping at Millennium Park..." the voice spoke through the speakers.
Jumping up from the seat, Blue slugged their bag over their shoulder before stepping off the platform. Jared followed behind. "Don't tell me you're stalking me," they grumbled.
"This is my stop. I'm heading to the Kimpton Hotel."
"Damn."
"You are too?" he smirked. "Well, at least share a taxi with me. It'll allow me the chance to apologize."
"I don't think I'm the one you should be apologizing to," Blue stated as the signaled for a taxi.
Jared, being slightly taller than Blue, leaned over them and hailed a taxi in seconds. He opened the door for them, silently asking them to enter. "You're paying," they spat as they crawled in. At least they were using his money for their personal gain.
"Kimpton," he told the driver.
"Look," he addressed to Blue, "I didn't read his books, I'm sorry. If I knew they were LGBT related, I wouldn't have said anything. I happen to support them, I do. I had a personal relationship with Andrew, and I don't happen to like him. That's the only reason I said anything about the books. I don't like being compared to him."
"What did he ever do to you?"
"Nothing to concern yourself over," he stated, dropping the subject.
The rest of the ride was silent, and the moment they arrived at the hotel, Blue bolted out of the taxi. The doorman opened the door for the two, and Blue rushed towards the elevator. They were already told in advance what room Andrew would be in, so they were prepared to head over right away.
They needed to vent, but Blue assumed it would be better to wait until the band arrived. They couldn't tell Andrew. He was already annoyed with being at the party in the first place, he didn't need to stress himself over his brother being in the same building as well. They could wait to tell him after the party.
Jared trailed behind them yet again, following them to the elevator.
"Don't you need to check in?" they groaned.
"I merely have a meeting here. That's it." Grabbing their hand, he guided their head to stare into his eyes. "Blue, listen, I-"
"What the hell?" Martin exclaimed, emerging from the elevators with Andrew by his side, staring at the two in their compromising position in utter horror.