I'M AS STRAIGHT AS A SPAG

Chapter 6

Max

I went into my room and closed the door behind me, leaning against it and trying to calm down. Jordan was at his desk doing homework and he looked up when I came in.

"You okay? You look kind of pale."

"I'm fine. Just tired."

He studied my face for a moment like he didn't believe me but didn't push it. "How was your first day?"

"Good. The facilities here are amazing."

"That's great. I had a good day too. Made some friends in my tennis classes." He paused. "Hey, you want to grab breakfast together tomorrow? I know this place that makes incredible pancakes."

I thought about Dad's warning about getting too friendly with Jordan but right now I needed a friend more than I needed to follow his advice.

"That sounds good."

"Cool. We can leave around eight if that works for you."

"Perfect."

I got ready for bed and tried to push the day's encounters with Ace out of my mind. Tomorrow would be better. It had to be.

But as I lay in the dark staring at the ceiling I couldn't stop thinking about the way he'd looked at me in the dining hall. For just a second when our eyes met, before his expression had hardened, there had been something else there.

Something I couldn't quite identify.

I was probably imagining things. Ace made it pretty clear how he felt about me and it wasn't anything good.

I rolled over and tried to fall asleep but my mind wouldn't shut off. Every time I closed my eyes I saw Ace's face, heard his voice telling me I was weak and that Freya would leave me.

Maybe he was right. Maybe I was weak for letting his words get to me so much. A stronger person would have said something back, would have stood up for themselves.

But I'd just stood there and taken it like I always did.

My phone buzzed on the nightstand and I grabbed it, hoping it was a text from Freya. Instead it was from an unknown number.

Hey, it's Bright from your Marketing class. Want to study together sometime this week?

I typed back a quick response saying sure and we could figure out details later. At least someone at this school seemed to want to be friends with me.

I set the phone back down and tried once again to fall asleep. This time I managed to drift off but my dreams were filled with ice blue eyes and that cold, mocking laugh.

I woke up the next morning feeling like I hadn't slept at all. Jordan was already up and getting dressed for our breakfast plans.

"Morning, sunshine," he said cheerfully. "You ready for those pancakes?"

"Yeah, just give me a few minutes to get ready."

I threw on jeans and a t-shirt and grabbed my backpack. When I opened the door to leave I automatically looked across the hall but Ace's door was closed and I didn't hear any movement from inside.

Good. Maybe I could get through the whole day without seeing him.

Jordan and I had a great breakfast and he turned out to be really easy to talk to. He told me about growing up in California and how his parents had reacted when he came out to them junior year of high school.

"They were actually pretty cool about it," he said, cutting into his pancakes. "My mom cried a little but that was more about being worried about me facing discrimination than anything else. My dad just asked if I was happy and when I said yes he said that was all that mattered to him."

I felt a pang thinking about how different my dad's reaction had been just to meeting Jordan, let alone if I had something like that to tell him.

"That's really nice," I said. "Your parents sound great."

"They are. What about yours? Are they supportive of your basketball career?"

"Oh yeah, they've been amazing. My dad especially, he's been coaching me since I was little." I paused. "They're just kind of traditional about some things, you know?"

Jordan nodded like he understood exactly what I meant. "Yeah, I get that. My grandparents on my dad's side are still adjusting. But they're trying, which is what matters."

We talked for another hour about school and sports and our families. It was nice having a normal conversation with someone who wasn't either trying to impress me because of basketball or looking at me like I was something unpleasant.

When we got back to the dorms I was in a much better mood. Maybe yesterday had just been a bad day and things would be different now.

That optimism lasted exactly until I saw Ace coming down the hallway toward us. He was wearing his hockey gear and had his equipment bag slung over his shoulder. When he saw us he stopped walking and his expression darkened.

"Well well, look what we have here," he said, looking back and forth between Jordan and me. "Didn't take you long to find a new friend, did it Rivera?"

Jordan looked confused. "Do you two know each other?"

"Unfortunately," Ace said before I could answer. "Max here is dating my sister."

"Oh cool, small world," Jordan said, clearly not picking up on the tension. "I'm Jordan, by the way."

Ace looked Jordan up and down in a way that made my stomach clench with anxiety. I could see him taking in Jordan's styled hair, his fashionable clothes, the way he carried himself.

"I'm sure you are," Ace said, and something about his tone made Jordan's friendly smile falter.

"Come on, Jordan," I said quickly. "We should get going."

But Ace wasn't done. "You know, Rivera, I'm starting to see a pattern here. Maybe my sister should know about the kind of friends you're making."

My blood went cold. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I think you know exactly what it means."

Jordan stepped closer to me and I could feel the tension radiating off him. "Okay, I don't know what your problem is, but you need to back off."

Ace laughed. "Or what? You'll do something about it?"

"Maybe I will."

For a second I thought they might actually get into a fight right there in the hallway. Ace was bigger and probably stronger but Jordan looked like he wasn't going to back down.

"Stop it, both of you," I said, stepping between them. "This is stupid."

Ace looked at me with something that might have been disappointment. "Yeah, it really is." He adjusted his bag on his shoulder. "See you around, Rivera. Both of you."

He walked away leaving Jordan and me standing there in awkward silence.

"What the hell was that about?" Jordan asked.

"I don't know. He's always been like that with me."

"Like what? A complete asshole?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

Jordan shook his head. "And he's your girlfriend's brother? That must make family dinners fun."

"We don't really do family dinners."

We went back to our room and I tried to focus on getting ready for my classes but I couldn't stop thinking about the encounter.

The way Ace had looked at Jordan, the tone in his voice when he talked about patterns and telling Freya.

But then, something about the way Ace had been looking at I and Jordan made my stomach twist with anxiety.

And what did he mean about seeing a pattern? What pattern?

Did he really think there was something going on between Jordan and me? We were just friends, we'd literally just met yesterday.

And besides, I'm as straight as a spag. I love Freya and would get married to her when we're both ready.

I miss her a lot too, can't wait to see her soon. To hold her in my hands, to kiss and make love to her.

I went through the rest of my day on autopilot. Basketball practice was better than yesterday but I still felt distracted. Coach Williams complimented my defense during scrimmage but I barely heard him.

All I could think about was Ace and his threats and the way he'd looked at Jordan like he was planning something.

By the time I got back to the dorms that evening I was exhausted. Jordan had evening tennis practice so I had the room to myself. I sat on my bed and stared at my phone for a long time before finally making the call I'd been thinking about all day.

The phone rang twice before it was picked up.

"Max? How are doing? It's been a while."

Just hearing that voice made some of the tension leave my shoulders. "Hey, yeah, it's me."

"Dude, it's been forever since we actually talked on the phone. How are you?"

I closed my eyes and leaned back against my pillow. "It's complicated."