Page 43 of Waves

Eric was the last person—well, second to last to Kai—I would expect to lose his patience. I think I heard him cuss maybe once in the entire time I’d known him (but I guess now I should say twice). He was the kind of guy I fully expected to know how to gut fish or to have a plan for when the government declared martial law, but he was not the violent type. Maybe I shouldn’t be so surprised to see him execute a perfect haymaker, but I was.

“Get off my lawn, and don’t you dare come back here,” Eric yelled, pointing in the direction of the gate once again.

Thom hopped to his feet surprisingly quick and dusted himself off even faster. He didn’t dare to stick around and skulked away without another word.

My eyebrows flew so high they must have disappeared, and my eyes stayed wide open once I looked at Kai, then Eric, and back to Kai. Part of me wondered if the two of them planned this. Even though my legs were wobbly and my stomach ached, I felt relieved Kai chose me over pummeling Thom into the ground. I didn’t know how I’d bail out a man who didn’t exist on paper.

“Eric, you... you didn’t have to...”

Eric smiled so wide while he casually waved his hand, dismissing my concerns. “Nobody messes with my best friend.”

If my jaw wasn’t on the floor before, it certainly unhinged itself now. I had always been under the assumption that as the token gay friend of Eric’s future wife I was someone he merely tolerated. But to hear him call me his friend—his best friend, no less? He had to be drunk. Or maybe I was so dazed I misheard him. There was no way he thought so highly of me.

Sure, Eric let me stay in what was technically his house after Thom and I split. And yes, the guy helped me move out of my place and then again when I found where I live now. He even drove the truck for me. And he made a point of talking to me every time Mary threw a party, always greeting me with a smile and a six-pack of craft beer. And even today he insisted on grilling the veggie patties before any meat touched the grill—as a matter of fact, meatless options always got included for me ever since Mary and Eric started living together. Mary was my friend for over a decade, but had always been way too scatterbrained to remember these things consistently.

I squinted my eyes at Eric while a sudden realization slowly crept up on me. Maybe I did have more than one real friend left. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” Eric said with a shrug. He took a step closer and tilted his head to better look at the other side of my face. “Come on, we better get some ice on that.”

I didn’t like this feeling. Succumbing to anger never felt good, especially over something I had no control over, but—how could anyone lay a hand on someone as unassuming as Ezra? The man wouldn’t even squish insects, for goodness’ sake, and I personally witnessed him rescuing bumblebees who nosedived into my pool then setting them into the sun to dry. I couldn’t believe anyone could get so angry at such a sweet soul as to actually cause him physical harm. If that weren’t upsetting enough, seeing the kindness of his eyes even temporarily displaced by fear crushed me.

Ezra remained jittery the whole way home, which wasn’t very far, thankfully. Ishmael greeted us right away, and Ezra patted him on the head before drifting across the kitchen. I offered to let Ishmael out, and Ezra simply nodded then continued down the hall to his bedroom almost in a stupor.

Ishmael came bounding into the house after emptying his bladder all over the bushes, and being the piglet he was, he scratched at the fridge while whining at me. I knew for a fact Ezra fed him an early dinner before we went out and even left some extra in his bowl for him. Knowing Ishmael, that probably got scarfed down in the first ten minutes after we left. He woofed very softly while looking up at me, and I couldn’t say no to that face of his. I gave him half a packet and told him this was coming out of his breakfast tomorrow, but he gobbled his food and ignored my warning. He knew full well he’d get a whole serving.

I walked down the hallway to the dark bedroom and cracked open the door. Ezra huddled himself in bed under the covers already. I peeled my shirt off first then my jeans, but only because I preferred not to wear much of anything whenever I could. After climbing into the bed, I slid next to Ezra. If there were only one thing I missed a bit more than the other thousands I already treasured about him, it would be the quiet moments like this one.

Ezra rolled then scooted the rest of the way over without a word. He suctioned himself to me and didn’t let go, hugging me to him while his head stayed tucked under my chin. He had been visibly upset from the moment we walked in the house, but the way he shivered, coupled with a hiccup, told me he had finally broken down. I kissed the top of his head while I kept him close and traced my fingers along his spine just the way I knew he loved, despite his arguments to the contrary.

Occasionally, I wondered how I knew these things inherently, much in the same way I couldn’t readily explain how I picked locks with the same ease as swimming or breathing. I just knew. Or maybe my body did and muscle memory took over for my mind.

Even then, I couldn’t explain it all and the relentless enigma puzzled me. At least I had some practice with locks over the years, but adult human males, not so much. All I knew was Ezra’s green eyes made my heart race since before I even knew his name. From the moment I finally got close enough to touch him, my hands recognized his skin and every inch of him felt familiar. Maybe part of me had always known him, and that same part now loved him.

Throughout the night I kept Ezra closer than I ever thought I’d be to him and consoled him until he calmed down enough to fall asleep. Despite the darkness, the moonlight from curtains that never got closed caressed his features. I understood what Ezra meant about how endearing he found me when sleeping. I felt content watching him too, knowing he was relaxed and well.

* * *

EZRA

I didn’t need to look at the clock to know it was still early. Only a faint glow of sunlight shone behind the curtains. Such a Kai thing to do, making sure I get enough sleep and closing the curtains so the sunlight won’t wake me. Ishmael snored in the sheets beside me, his legs splayed while he took up over half the bed. My stomach twisted when I didn’t see Kai snoring along with him. This morning made day five.

Ishmael didn’t move after I rolled out of bed and sulked down the hall to the kitchen, my bare feet slapping against the linoleum. I came to a screeching halt when I walked past the sliding door, and there was Kai... lounging in his pool with his eyes closed.

He looked so serene basking in the low light I almost wished I had my phone on me, but I was too excited to see him. Even if he couldn’t stay for long, I never thought he would leave without saying goodbye. Kai opened his eyes, smiling at me when I stepped onto the patio. I spotted his underwear on the ground and shook my head. Of course, he went in naked.

“You always soak nude?” I teased.

“Absolutely,” he said with a nod.

“You feel okay?”

Kai cocked his head to the side and merely shrugged. “I might be hungover.”

I snorted and shook my head at him. Typical Kai, never complaining about anything.

“Come and join me. The water is nice and warm.” Kai swirled the water with his hands to emphasize his point.

I was about to refuse when I asked myself why. This was my boyfriend, sitting in my kiddie pool (that I set up for him), in my backyard. If I wanted a half-naked soak at sunrise with him, I damn well would. I pulled my shirt off and stepped out of my pajama bottoms before swinging a leg over the side of the pool to sit with him. Kai had been right about the water, which was not as warm as a hot tub but more tepid like bathwater.