He slammed his hands down on his superior's desk, the angriest he had been in his recent life. "How could you do this to me? I've worked here long enough that I should get a choice in this."
"Calm down, Charlie. You're still wet behind the ears, and honestly, what's the deal?" his superior said. She was the police chief of their little conservative town and had her say in all the decisions. "You should be thanking me."
"For sending me undercover to the pride parade?" Charlie asked. He crossed his arms.
She sighed and rested her chin on her steepled fingers. The tight bun gave her an extremely serious look. "Yes. Obviously. They've finally gotten permission to take to the streets. I'd expect you to be happier. I'm telling you to mingle and join the festivities. What's the worst that can happen? You get hit on?"
"Maybe I don't want to! Did you think of that?"
"No one else wants to take on the job, not even your partner. Buck up. We don't know how the town will take it, and if things go downhill it'll be nice to have a man on the inside," the police chief explained. "Now roll up your shirt cuffs. Isn't that what you do to indicate you're into men?"
Charlie ground his teeth together. He decided not to correct her on the fact that that was a lesbian thing. It wasn't worth it and he would still have to do this job. He rolled his cuffs past his elbows and stalked out the door.
- - - - - -
He was going to be sick. He had resorted to rolling up all his cuffs, jeans and shirt, as the summer heat attacked him in all its glory. Technically it was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, there was barely a cloud in the sky, and the humidity could be worse. But he was surrounded by hundreds of bodies from neighbouring communities packed onto one not very wide street.
The way they were so blatantly, well, not cis nor straight, was the leading cause of his nausea. His eyes would either be blinded by shirtless men who were far from being models or the rainbow of neon colours everywhere. It was like they wanted to stick out as far as possible when compared to the straight variety of humans.
Sure it was great that the petition got more than enough signatures to allow this monstrosity to happen, but this wasn't his scene. They were allowed to feel pride, yes. It was just that in his personal opinion they represented only a fraction of the total community, many of whom were not this outgoing. And it created a stereotype for others to be judged by even if they weren't part of this small selection.
It was as if a unicorn had yacked all over the town's queer people and then proceeded to crap sparkles in its wake. His eyes were burning and he wished he had thought to bring sunglasses with him.
- - - - - -
The crowd was heading in a general direction, towards the downtown area. He tried to go with the flow but found he stuck out like a sore thumb. Not being dressed like anybody else and having his arms permanently crossed meant he was often bumped around in all the loose dancing. He wouldn't be surprised if he had a nasty scowl, his mood having plummeted more than the person not far ahead of him had gone all out with enough rainbows to attract a leprechaun.
And someone else had noticed. They fell into stride beside him and held out a hand. "Hi. I'm Brayden. He/him."
"Oh, uh," he stumbled out. "Charlie. Also a he."
"Come out for someone else? Oops. Silly me, bad phrasing. It's just, you don't seem very comfortable here, so I'm guessing you're being someone's ally," Brayden said. He smiled and looked rather handsome doing so despite his colourful attire.
The other man was wearing as many colours as possible, like almost everyone else, although he favoured the odd combination of pink, yellow, and blue. Somehow he made it work.
"No, um, I'm sort of undercover," Charlie explained. He wanted to hit himself for giving that information up so easily, but the way he was being eyed up he figured the gun would be spotted sooner rather than later. There was no need for a hysterical man raving about a gun at an already sensitive public event.
"The press?" Brayden asked, eyes still wandering. "I don't mind doing a private interview."
Charlie suspected he had just been flirted with, as evidenced by the wink at the end of the sentence. He tried to overcome his flustered state and corrected the assumption. "Police."
"Oh." The flamboyant man seemed disappointed by the news before he cheered up. "Well, we can't have you going around like this. How do you feel about washable tattoos?"
"Define washable," Charlie started before his companion bounded off into the crowd. He shrugged and continued onward, casting his gaze around in a search for trouble. A few people were tussling, though it was not of a violent nature. He quickly turned away.
- - - - - -
Brayden returned with a selection of small paper squares and he held them out like playing cards. There was the classic rainbow and several more combinations of stripes, one of which matched the tri-colour shirt he was wearing.
"Pick one," he said.
Charlie hesitated and settled on the rainbow. He wasn't sure the meaning of the other flags and didn't want to broadcast totally inaccurate messages about himself.
He let Brayden apply it to his cheek. There was no point standing out in a crowd that already stood out. Perhaps he'd find a pair of rainbow sunglasses in a shop along the road to add to his disguise.
The hand attending to the fake tattoo was warm against his skin. It caressed his cheek, gentle and soothing. Too soon the paper was peeled back and the hand gone. He had missed such contact since he had decided to put building his career first.
- - - - - -
"Does Charlie stand for anything?" Brayden suddenly asked. He was still bouncing along beside the police officer like a puppy. The enthusiasm was disturbingly cute.
"Charles. Why?" Charlie wanted to know.
"Just asking. If you want to look like more of a Charlie and less like a Charles I suggest unbuttoning at least a few buttons on your shirt."
"What's wrong with the way I have it now?"
"Everything," Brayden said. He gestured towards the other man's torso and looked up through his eyelashes. "I can't see the muscles I know you're hiding."
Charlie gave an exaggerated sigh and pulled his button-up apart to reluctantly show a bit more chest. He was giving up too much ground as it was. He was only a giant cape or two away from the people around him.
- - - - - -
Out of the corner of his eye he saw aggravated figures and when he cast his ears in that direction he could pick out yelling. It looked like it could use police intervention. Brayden followed behind as he went to check on the situation.
There was a crowd of people in pink, blue, and white who either presented as male but looked slightly feminine or presented as female and looked slightly masculine. It wasn't too hard to guess where they fit into the community.
There was a man and a wife on the sidelines, the husband making a fuss. He was taunting a few members while the woman tried to pull him away. They were clearly right-wing by their clothes and demeanor.
"But darling!" he was saying, chest puffed out in dominance. "What a handsome woman, wouldn't you say? C'mere, mister."
"Seriously, let's go. They weren't hurting us, so why hurt them?"
"They're making a mockery of us. Men aren't meant to be women! Women can't just go around claiming they're men. That's not how it works."
At this point Charlie had made it over and stood in front of the transphobic man. He eyed a suspicious bulge in the other man's pants but didn't pull out his gun yet. "Leave them alone."
"And why should I?" asked the husband. He put his hands on his hips and touched the bulge threateningly.
"There's more of us than there are of you," Brayden said from behind, slipping an arm around Charlie's waist for moral support. He was either an idiot or unaware of the danger.
"Ha! As if the police would be on your side if you could mob us. Don't be funny."
"I am the police," Charlie butted in, putting on his best command voice. For good measure he also pulled out his badge. "Get out of here before I cuff and frisk you. If you pull anything else, remember that I know your face."
"Fine. But I'm talking to your superior about this. She'll know the worth of my words," the man threatened. Thankfully he walked away, tail between his legs, with his wife tagging along behind him. He seemed to be all bark, like a small dog. He pretended to be big but dunk him in cold water and he majorly shrunk in size.
Charlie released the tension that had taken over his body and noticed the looks he was getting from the nearby people. It could have been worse if that had turned out to be a gun and a fight had ensued, though. He shrugged it off and walked away, hoping Brayden was following. He also sent a quick text to his partner to do a subtle search just in case.
- - - - - -
"So," said Brayden. "You're a policeman. Are the females called policewomen? How about when there's a non-binary person? Are they a policeperson?"
"I'm not sure, actually." Charlie gave this some thought. "We've never encountered anyone willing to identify as non-binary at the station, but it's become more of a title of its own separate from gender in the force. Most women on the force are totally fine with being called a policeman. We're trying to be more inclusive, though. Take our police chief, for instance."
"Ah." His companion nodded. "Token woman."
"I wouldn't say that," Charlie argued. "She's proved quite capable and all our operations run smoothly. We all respect her."
Brayden only nodded some more.
- - - - - -
He noticed a stand with the sunglasses he had been imagining earlier. The sun was no less relentless and he went over to purchase them. He considered the matching hat as well and almost dropped it when a deep voice broke into his thoughts.
"Hey, gorgeous," the man behind the stand said. Charlie looked up and squinted in his direction. The glasses were taken from him and slipped on his face by a firm hand.
"Hi," Charlie said. He took in the other male's appearance. "Not looking so bad yourself."
"Is there anything I can help you with?"
He swallowed and licked his dry lips, drawing on his courage. Then he held up a hand in a vain attempt to block the sun. "Is it just me or did it just get hotter out here? I need these sunglasses just to look at you."
"I know a way or two to cool off, on me," the very attractive man offered with a wink. He glanced over Charlie's shoulder and frowned. "Oh, sorry. I didn't realize."
Brayden stepped forward and looked between them. "I found a place selling popsicles, if you want to hit it next."
"Sure, let me pay first," Charlie said. He pulled out his wallet and gave enough money for the hat and glasses, along with a generous amount of change he refused to take back.
- - - - - -
They bought their frozen treats and found a convenient wall to lean against. Charlie kept his gaze wandering over the crowd, looking for signs of trouble. Nothing turned up and he was allowed to enjoy his popsicle in peace.
"There was a woman at that stand," Brayden burst out after several minutes of silence. "But you flirted with the man."
Charlie watched him out of the corner of his eye. "And?"
"Either you're a very good actor and this is part of your disguise, or you're actually into men. Did you sign up for this?"
"No," he replied. "I didn't want to come."
His popsicle was melting faster than he could eat it and he licked the base to protect his fingers from the sugary liquid. He then inserted it as far as it would go in his mouth to suck all the partially melted goop off the surface. This brought him back to his teen years where he had to learn these tricks or get hands covered in a sticky substance. Only children dripped on themselves.
Brayden kept his eyes on Charlie as he ate his own popsicle. "Right."
- - - - - -
"It's been a long time since a man looked at me in that way," the police officer finally revealed. "Usually it's a straight until proven gay world."
He had felt it right to inform the station of his preferences, making it a hard road. Harassment wasn't tolerated but there had been some odd looks and statements definitely bordering on ignorance. Here it was a free world. He could be as gay as he wanted without judgement. He could rip that popsicle out of Brayden's mouth and replace it with him and no one would care. Except, he'd have to go and face his colleagues after.
Damn it. Now that mouth was the center of his focus and wanting to lean in and kiss it was the same torture as having an itch he couldn't scratch.
"Did you like it? It's okay if you did," Brayden said, licking up the remains of his treat.
"I know it is," Charlie said. He also finished his popsicle and threw out the stick. "It's fine. It's all fine."
"Right."
He was uncomfortable and shifted. That didn't solve the matter so he propelled himself back into the crowd. He had to keep his eyes off that mouth. The more he tried to not think about it the more it plagued his every thought.
- - - - - -
They walked further into the mess and were stopped by the actual press. A woman shoved a microphone in his face. "What's it like?"
"What's what like?" Charlie dumbly asked back. He had not been prepared for this. Press conferences didn't happen to officers as junior as him.
"It's amazing!" Brayden gushed. "Ignore him, he may or may not be having a gay awakening. Hey, Mom! I'm on TV!"
Charlie scowled. "I'm not having a gay awakening. Don't fool yourself."
"You hurt me, Charles," said Brayden, his hand over his heart. The dramatics were soaked up by the camera. The woman smiled and shook her head in amusement.
"What brings you here, Charles was it?" she asked.
"Charlie."
"Alright, Charlie. If you're not here to explore your identity, are you here for your friend?" the reporter said as she rephrased the question.
"I'm gay," he replied. Then he pulled his hat low to hide his face and stalked away. Brayden bounced after him, his kicked puppy face full force and adorable.
"I wanted to stay longer. Why did you have to go?"
Charlie rolled his shoulders. "You could have stayed. You didn't have to follow me."
"Yeah, but you're fun! I thought you'd just shoo me away, y'know? Or, like, be all stuck-up, but you're cool," Brayden said. "Besides, I don't know anyone else here."
"You came alone?"
He nodded. "It's sad. I know."
Charlie wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer. He narrowly avoided leaning in too far. His goal was only to comfort. Nothing more.
- - - - - -
His phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out, wondering who would call him while he was at work. The screen couldn't be seen that well in the broad sunlight and his fumbling around only managed to accept the call.
"Oh my god, Charles, why didn't you tell me?" his mother said from the phone. His father could be heard mumbling in the background. "We saw it on the news. Luckily we got the end of your little speech there."
"They actually picked us to air?" Brayden asked. He broke away and glanced in the direction they came from, where the news vans had their giant satellites set up.
"Saw what? I doubt it was a surprise. I thought you knew," Charlie said. He found an alley with enough shade to see his screen and realized he was on a video call.
His father appeared on the screen, or rather, his mustache. "Congrats, son. Say goodbye to your inheritance or explain your behaviour."
"I have to get back to work. I'm supposed to be undercover right now," said Charlie. He was confused. He had already come out to his parents to explain why he was never going to have a wife.
"You're not getting away that easily," his mother said before he could hang up. "Tell us who this cutie is or we're adopting him. I'm getting him as a son either way."
"Mom! He's not my boyfriend. I haven't even thought of proposing, or asking him on a date for that matter!"
Brayden laughed. "We just met today. Way too early for meeting the parents. But consider me not scared off quite yet. Is that a dog?"
His father's mustache moved out of the way to reveal their new puppy yapping at the screen and the next few minutes were spent listening to collective cooing sounds.
- - - - - -
Charlie forced his parents off the call and was about to slip his phone back in his pocket when he saw the time and realized his shift was up already. They had been wandering the streets for hours.
"I'm going to head to the station. What do you want to do?" he asked.
Brayden held out his own phone. "Exchange numbers. We could meet again sometime. It doesn't have to be a date!"
"Sounds nice." So they did just that.
Charlie began his trek to the station but stopped and looked back at the mouth which now haunted his daydreams. He leaned down and kissed the cheek beside it.
"A real gentleman," Brayden said. "You can be bolder than that."
Charlie leaned in and pecked his mouth. "Like this?"
"Mhm. Exactly. Like this." Brayden grinned and returned the peck. It quickly escalated into a makeout session both of them were unwilling to stop.
Someone cleared their throat and Charlie backed up from the wall he had pinned his companion up against. He knew that sound anywhere. It was his superior, the chief of his police station.
"Mixing pleasure with business?" she asked. Her bun was looking a little out of sorts. It must have been a rough day to come all the way out instead of calling.
"I'm off duty," said Charlie. Brayden nodded his head in agreement.
"He had to fit in," he said, supplementing the police officer's statement. "It looks less suspicious having a good time than being all serious and just walking straight up and down the street."
"Hmm. I suppose," the superior said. "However, we have a problem."
"Must be that one guy, bitter how you jumped in and defended our people. He said he'd do that. Charlie's diffused over a dozen tense situations since I found him! Please don't make him get in trouble! He's really nice," Brayden babbled out.
"That's not it. We've caught him since he had a firearm on his person, thanks for that, by the way. Who knows what he could have done while roaming free."
"Oops?" Charlie tried. Sometimes he needed to follow his instinct better.
"Additionally, your face is all over the news. Everyone knows you're gay, or thinks you were making a joke," she said.
Charlie frowned. "I don't see a problem. I can make a statement if you'd like, to ensure it wasn't a joke. All I need is for the force to stand behind me."
"That can be arranged. Have your little fun, you're suspended until further notice." She stalked away and out of sight.
Brayden raised an eyebrow. "Is she always like that?"
"Yeah," Charlie said. "But I'm glad she made me come out here. I've had the time of my life."