The day stretched long and slow, humid and heavy, despite the early summer breeze. Eli spent most of it pretending to help around the house, organizing boxes in the garage, halfheartedly sweeping the back patio, avoiding his father’s attempts to talk long-term plans. He offered distracted nods and vague answers, all while his mind kept drifting back to one thing.
One person.
Dominic.
He kept replaying the morning over and over again. Dominic at the stove, the heat in his voice when he said it is real, the way he hadn’t pulled away from Eli’s touch. It wasn’t just attraction. It wasn’t just a crush. It was something else now. Something bigger, more dangerous.
And it was mutual.
Eli knew it with a certainty that made his chest tighten and his thoughts scatter.
By late afternoon, the air had turned sticky, the kind of thick summer heat that clung to your skin and made everything feel slower, heavier. Eli headed out to the back deck, peeling off his shirt and stretching out on one of the
