Page 34 of Phoenix Chosen 2

Jeff absorbs my words, then turns his face away from me and slaps the faucet handle. As he goes to splash his face, I can see tears dripping down his chin.

He grins, blows his nose, and nods. “I’m always fucking things up. God, you were the best thing to happen to me, Tyler. And now it’s too late.”

We both stand there, frozen in silence. The water runs and runs.

Then he turns to me. “I’m glad we got to have such a great time together,” he says, forcing a smile to hold himself back from crying. “I wish I’d not taken it for granted. But I loved every moment of it. You’re a great person, Tyler. Kalistratos is a lucky man to have you. And, phew, you’re lucky, too.” He fans himself.

I snort-laugh. “He’s hot, right?” Then I reach out and hug him. “Hey. Thanks for all the fun we shared, Jeff. Truly.”

I don’t feel sad. The weight, the anger, all of it is dissipating, replaced with a lightness in my heart. I know that when I look back on the phase of my life I spent with Jeff, I’ll remember the good things. I’ll remember that in the end, it made me a betterperson. Without my experiences with Jeff, I might not have grown enough to be ready to love Kalistratos.

“I’m sorry that I laid all of this on you so suddenly,” I tell him. “None of this is your problem, but I wrapped you up in it. It’s selfish of me.”

“Nah, no way. I’m glad you could come to me. Look, I’m not built for going up against shadow monsters, let alone being wanted by the police. But I want to help you guys. So take my car.”

“Seriously? But… Jeff, you know this could be a one-way trip for me. I mean, I’m not planning ondyingor anything, but…”

“Yeah, I know. You have a new home to get back to. Don’t worry, I have a spare key and a GPS tag. I’ll find the car, wherever you leave it.”

I hear Kalistratos snoring loudly from the other room. Jeff laughs. “Why don’t you guys rest here, and then stay the night? I’ll pull out the sofa bed for you guys.”

For the rest of the day, it’s like I’m able to go back to the best parts of my old life. Kalistratos and I nap for a while, then Jeff orders a bunch of takeout from all of our favorite restaurants, and the three of us sit around the dining table and pig out. Kalistratos loves the pad thai and fried chicken but hates the gyros.

“I could get better from a street rat in a Kausos back alley,” he says.

Afterwards, dessert. Nothing fancy—since Kalistratos loves Coke so much, Jeff makes ice cream floats using a scoop of vanilla and a can of Coke.

“Your world may be filled with utter chaos,” Kalistratos says after scraping the last dredges of ice cream and soda from his glass. “But I concede one thing… The food is pretty damn good.”

“Alright,” Jeff says, rubbing his hands together. “I think we have enough time for a small movie marathon.”

“A small movie marathon for you is not a small movie marathon,” I say, laughing.

“Kalistratos? What do you say? Want to see some of the most awesome movies ever made?”

“There are more?” Kalistratos asks.

“There’s more than one person could possibly hope to watch,” I tell him. “And, somehow, Jeff has seen most of them. You see all of those bookcases? All of those cases are different movies. Different stories contained in each one.”

“Well, come on then,” Kalistratos says, sitting on the couch. “Show me.”

Jeff lets out a delighted squeal. Showing people new movies is his passion, and he has the world’s rarest subject right in his living room. I settle in next to Kalistratos and lean against his shoulder as Jeff zips around like a hummingbird, gathering different movies from the shelves. He pops in the first disc—Star Wars, of course—turns the lights down and sits on the far side of the L-shaped sofa. I can’t help but feel bad for him sitting over there on his own. Then Kalistratos beckons with his hand.

“Friend,” he says to Jeff. “You needn’t be so far away.” He pats the sofa next to him.

“Oh… Okay, sure,” Jeff says, and then happily gets up and sits next to Kalistratos.

I smile up at my man with so much admiration and appreciation. Kalistratos is generous, he’s protective, he’s understanding, and I know he’ll always be here for me and those I care about. Our minds are matched in a way I’ve never experienced before. Kalistratos is a true alpha. He’s my alpha.

13

KALISTRATOS

“Hey, take care, alright?” Jeff says to Tyler as we prepare to depart. “Stay out of trouble. Try not to get arrested or some shit.”

“I’ll do my best,” Tyler says. “If I do, I guess you’ll be hearing from me.”

Jeff laughs. “Then no news is good news.” He hugs Tyler, then turns to me. “Here, this is for you. For the road.”