”Put the jacket on, sport-o. You’re gonna catch a cold.” Reggie said, a small smile tugging on his lips. Nick choked out a laugh, finally looking up at Reggie.
”I-uh, I wasn’t sure how welcome that would be.”
”Do you want yours back?” Reggie asked.
”No, no. It looks better on you.” Nick answered. But he still made no move to put on Reggie’s jacket. Their friends sat nearby, talking to themselves to avoid making them feel like they were being watched. Reggie sighed slightly, stepping over to the jacket and wrapping it around Nick’s shoulders.
”I know I walked away earlier. But please talk to me. Please. I need to know why.” Reggie swallowed around a lump in his throat. He was still hurt, but if he was honest, his crush outweighed the hurt.
Nick heaved a broken sigh, and as Reggie looked closer, he saw the tears stains on his cheeks. “It was supposed to be a joke. The bet, I mean. We were just making fun of Luke because he was saying he could get a date. We all knew about his crush on Julie, just like we all knew that Carrie had feelings for Flynn, and Willie had them for Alex, and I-“ Nick’s voice cracked.
”You had feelings for me.” Reggie finished. Nick nodded, wiping at his eyes again.
”Carrie made the bet just so that we would do something about our feelings. Willie’s been hitting on Alex for close to a year, and Carrie started flirting with Flynn the second she joined the cheer squad. She felt like Luke and me needed an extra push. That’s all it was supposed to be. I didn’t think she’d actually end up declaring a ‘winner’,” Nick air quoted the word winner, “And I didn’t think everything would get so fucked.”
”So the day the bet was made was when you gave me your jacket, right?” Nick nodded, “But you’ve liked me since you were twelve?” Nick looked up suddenly, wide eyed, like he was scared. Reggie let out a sad laugh. “Did I ever tell you how I realized I wasn’t straight?”
”No?” Nick didn’t mean for the answer to come out as a question, but he was confused about how Reggie knew, and about where this story was going.
”When I was a student here, before I went to private school, there was a boy that I realized I liked. He was a dork.” Reggie laughed. “We were twelve, he had this sandy blonde hair that caught the light in a way that made my breath catch. His eyes were prettier than anyone’s I’d ever seen. I had to look it up back then, what it meant, ya know. Except for guys like Alex and Willie, all the boys in our class only thought about girls like Carrie and Julie. But I thought about girls, and I thought about him. And then I left and I thought that was the last I’d see him. I didn’t think it would matter. Then I came back here, and he was the only person I saw. It felt kind of pathetic.” Reggie let out a self deprecating chuckle. Reggie reached out slowly, taking Nick’s hand in his carefully, like he was afraid Nick would pull away. Nick didn’t, he watched Reggie as the taller boy gently intertwined their fingers. “I was never able to get over you, Nick. And as weird as it is to say, I doubt I ever will.”
Nick’s mouthed opened and closed a few times before words finally came out, “I was the boy?”
Reggie nodded, huffing a laugh, “Yeah. You were the boy. You were the one that made me realize I wasn’t straight, and you were the boy I was still stuck on after being gone for five years.”
”Reggie, I was never able to get over you either. I mean, it was different, kind of.” Nick paused to gather his thoughts, and Reggie waited. He’s waited a long time for this boy, he could wait a little longer. After another moment, Nick spoke again, “I liked you, back then. I didn’t really think about the fact that I was gay, at first I thought I wanted to be your friend. But then I realized what the uneasy feeling in my gut was whenever I saw you hugging Julie or Flynn or Alex. When you came back, I didn’t recognize you at first. There were so many kids here that I never learned your last name before you moved away. I was interested in you because you didn’t try to get to know me just because people call me popular. But then I saw you smile one day. And I would know that smile anywhere. You were the same boy. The same boy that made my heart race when you laughed. The same boy that made my stomach burn with jealousy when you hugged your friends. The same boy that I wanted to listen to talk all day. I was falling in love with all over again by the time my brain made the connection.” As soon as the last sentence was out of his mouth, Nick stiffened, clamping his mouth shut.
”I was falling in love with you again, too.” Reggie muttered quietly. It was silent for a moment, and then Reggie asked a question, because he needed to know. “So, what do we do now?” He raised their joined hands slowly, pressing his lips to the back of Nick’s hand.
”I wish I knew.” Nick sighed. “It depends on if we can move past Carrie’s stupid idea.”
”Hey!” Carrie called out, “We didn’t realize it was stupid at the time!” The two boys turned to their friends. Alex was blushing, holding Willie’s hand. Flynn was braver, with her arm around Carrie’s waist. Julie grinned sheepishly, tucked under Luke’s arm. Reggie had to laugh.
”As stupid an idea as it was, it seemed to work.” Reggie said, leaning into Nick. “If you want this, then I’m in. If you don’t, say the word now.”
Nick looked at the boy beside him. This boy that has made him fall in love twice before he was even eighteen. “Reggie, do you want to go to Homecoming with me next week?”