Theoretically Perfect (Theoretically Straight #2)

8. Theo

Sunday, January 14

Slipping out of church today is easier than usual. Dad was quietly summoned away during worship for what I can only assume is someone from his Sunday school class wanting to get baptized. Mom is busy helping with the children’s ministry, and Nathaniel’s small group was roped into communion duty. Harrison is visiting Elise’s church this week. So as soon as the final song begins, Jake and I make our escape to Eileen to wait for Nathaniel.

Just as we arrive, Jake swears under his breath. “Shit.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I forgot to tell my dad I was going with you,” he replies, retrieving his phone from his pocket. “I’m just gonna call him real quick, probably leave him a voicemail.”

“Sure, go ahead,” I say, leaning against the door of Eileen. “We’re still waiting for Nate, anyway.”

As Jake steps away, I open the car door and settle in the front seat. There’s no one else around yet, and I enjoy the chilly January weather, so there’s no need to start Eileen’s engine—I can simply sit with the door open, relaxing as I wait. In fact, it’s the first time I’ve felt any semblance of peace all day.

There was a time not very long ago when waking up every Sunday for church was nothing more than a simple routine. For the most part, going to church every week felt like a minor inconvenience—a small price to pay to avoid displeasing my parents. Some Sundays were worse than others. There were definitely days when dragging myself out of bed for church felt a lot like clocking into work or going to school—a necessary chore I couldn’t get out of, so why bother fighting? The guilt of skipping church for my own selfish reasons far outweighed any possible benefits as far as I could tell, so I never really considered risking it.

Nowadays, it’s not quite that simple.

Now when I go to church, I listen to the same old Bible lessons and recall all the things Grace and her school friends taught me about the church’s deeply homophobic and misogynistic history. I smile and greet church members I’ve known my whole life and wonder how much their perceptions of me would change if they found out I had a boyfriend. I watch Sienna leading worship, and I relive that horrible moment on the Ferris wheel late last year, and the all-consuming terror and shame that followed. I sing along with hymns and praise music, and slowly realize that where I used to feel a connection with God, I feel…

I feel nothing.

“Hey, Theodore.”

I’m so caught up in my own thoughts that I don’t even recognize the syrupy sweet smell of vanilla until it’s too late. “Sienna.”

Sienna’s piercing blue eyes are bright and wide when I finally meet her gaze. Her eyelids shimmer with an unfamiliar bronzy glow as she blinks, and her lashes flutter dramatically. She’s wearing significantly more eye makeup than usual—which is to say, any makeup at all. It’s honestly a bit unsettling.

“How—how are you? How’ve you been?” she asks eagerly, nervous energy radiating off her in waves.

I look past her for Jake or Nathaniel—anyone that can get me out of this conversation—but Jake is facing away from me, just out of earshot and still on his phone. “I’m fine,” I answer. “How are you?”

“Good,” she answers quickly. “I’m very blessed. Far more than I deserve.”

I nod, still avoiding eye contact. “Good. That’s, uh—I’m glad to hear it.”

There’s a moment of awkward silence, and I scramble to think of some kind of excuse to make her leave, but Sienna clears her throat before I get the chance. “Yeah, hey, um, Theo, I just wanted to—” she stammers. “—it’s been good to see—well, I’m just really glad you’re here.”

“Of course,” I answer, robotically at first, but something about her words doesn’t sit right. I frown at her. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Sienna shakes her head dismissively, her orange curls swirling around her face. “Oh, no, yeah, of course, I was just—nevermind, it doesn’t matter.”

I narrow my eyes. “You were just what?”

She shifts her weight from one leg to the other, then tries to shrug it off. “It’s silly. I was just a little worried for you—about you, I mean, spiritually, after—well, you know, after everything that happened.”

My stomach twists, anger swelling in my gut as I stare at her. My mind races with responses, a flurry of well-deserved cruelty I want to throw back in her face, but all that comes out is a slow, deliberate echo of her own words. “After everything that happened?”

Sienna’s face drains of color. “I’m—I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said?—”

“And by ‘everything that happened’,” I interrupt, lifting myself up and out of Eileen and onto my feet where I only barely match her height. “Are you referring to when you outed me to my parents?”

Her mouth snaps shut and her grip on her purse tightens. “Theo, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t?—”

“No, I just want to make sure we’re both talking about the same thing,” I snap, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “Because when you say it like that, ‘everything that happened,’ it almost makes it seem like it was just something that happened to me, like an accident.” I take a step closer to her, and she takes a step back. “When, in fact, it was something done to me—intentionally, knowingly, and on purpose—by you. Do you know what I mean?”

Sienna nods, her panicked eyes darting around in search of someone to rescue her, which just makes me angrier. She knows I would never hurt her. Why is she trying to make people think that I’m a threat to her?

Shit, does she think I am a threat to her?

“Is there a problem over here?”

Chase suddenly appears beside us wearing an uncharacteristically serious expression. His eyes are fixed mostly on Sienna, and I’m immediately aware of how bad this looks.

Sienna gulps audibly. “N–No, everything is fine,” she squeaks unconvincingly. “I was just leaving.”

“Things don’t seem fine to me,” Chase says sternly. “In fact, I’d say it’s pretty sus. Theo, do you have anything to say for yourself?”

“They were just talking, Chase,” Jake calls out before I can answer, and all three of us whip our heads towards Jake as he approaches. “Theo was minding his own business in his car waiting for me to finish talking to my dad. I don’t know what they’re talking about, but whatever it is, I know she started it.”

Chase furrows his brow as he turns back to Sienna and me. “Is there something the three of us need to discuss in private? Perhaps invite Joyce or Brandon, or maybe some parents in on the conversation?”

Sienna shakes her head. “No, sir.”

“Theo?”

“No, sir.”

Chase continues staring us both down for several more uncomfortable moments until he finally lets out a sigh and runs a frustrated hand through his spiky hair. “Look. I know at some point you two had some of kind of… situation-ship , and I don’t know if that’s still ongoing or what, but what I do know is that you don’t need to bring that junk here, okay?”

I nod my understanding, casting my eyes to the ground. I can feel my neck and cheeks beginning to burn with embarrassment.

“Well, maybe Sienna needs to mind her own business for once,” Jake mumbles.

“You say something, Jacob?” Chase asks pointedly.

I glance up to see Jake glaring at Sienna hatefully. I wince. “Jake, don’t?—”

“I said,” Jake replies, turning his angry gaze back to Chase. “I think Sienna needs to mind her own business and leave Theo alone.”

Sienna makes a pitiful sound—something between a gasp and a sniffle—and Chase’s eyes narrow in on Jake. “Jake, that’s enough. Apologize to Sienna, right now.”

Jake’s eye twitches, but he says nothing.

“Jacob Buchanon, I mean it. Apologize now.”

Jake looks my way, and I silently plead with my eyes. Please. Anything to end this conversation.

Finally, he sighs. “Sorry, Sienna.”

Sienna nods, averting her eyes to the ground and crossing her arms tightly across her chest.

“Thank you,” Chase exhales. “Now, let’s all go our separate ways, maybe pray about this, and get back together on Wednesday with better attitudes, alright?”

“Will do,” I mutter.

“Sure thing,” Jake grumbles.

“Amen,” Sienna whispers, and it takes another bout of strength not to roll my eyes.

And just like that, Chase is all smiles again. “Dope! Good talk, everyone. Now, Sienna, I did have some things I wanted to talk to you about worship on Wednesday if you have a few minutes?”

“Of course,” Sienna replies, her perky energy already returning as she and Chase turn and make their way toward The Foundation building.

Jake and I exchange a wordless stare just as Nathaniel approaches Eileen with wide eyes.

“Ready to go?” I ask.

“Yep,” Jake says.

Nate groans. “Man, how do I miss all the good stuff?” he grumbles as he opens the rear door and climbs in.

The three of us end up going through the drive thru of a local burger joint, parking in the back of the lot, and eating in the car with the engine running. The last thing I want to do right now is interact with other people, especially if those other people are from church. Fortunately, Jake and Nate feel the same way.

To my dismay, however, it isn’t long before the subject of Sienna comes up again.

“Man, Sienna really pisses me off,” Jake seethes, crumpling up the foil that once held his greasy burger. “Like, I used to feel fairly neutral about her. She’s always seemed pretty harmless—maybe a little annoying from time to time, but that’s all. But now, knowing what she did to you? Outing you to your parents? I can never look at her the same way again. I mean, who does shit like that? What a bitch.”

I can’t help but flinch at his harsh words, despite how much I agree with them. Maybe it’s because Nathaniel is in the car, but then again, I’ve definitely heard Nate use similar language about Sienna, so I keep my mouth occupied with a handful of fries.

“And the fact that she still has the gall to try and talk to you like nothing happened?” Jake continues. “Unbelievable. There’s no way she doesn’t know what she’s doing. She gets to say whatever she wants to you, and if you engage at all, she can turn around and play the victim to everyone else and get away with it. It’s disgusting. Chase has no idea who he’s dealing with. Or what she’s capable of.”

“And he can’t find out, Jake,” I counter. “I can’t just tell Chase that Sienna outed me without outing myself to him in the process.”

“I know, and that makes it fucking worse!” Jake barks. “It’s bullshit!”

“It really is,” Nate chimes in from the backseat. “She shouldn’t be able to get away with it.”

I shake my head. “Look, guys, I appreciate that y’all have my back, but there’s seriously nothing we can do, so I think we should just drop it and move on”

Jake scoffs, shifting aggressively in the passenger seat. “But what if she pulls that shit again? If she believes that reconciling with you is what God wants, she’s never going to stop.”

Shit. He’s right. “I don’t know. Maybe I just need to try harder to avoid her.”

“But how?” Nathaniel asks. “Sienna is always at church. It’s not like you can just stop going. Dad would lose his shit on you again.”

“Unless,” Jake says thoughtfully. “Unless you just stay away from the youth group. Do stuff at church that you know she’s not involved in.”

“Like what?” I ask bitterly.

“You could volunteer to help with the kids’ ministry with Mom,” Nate suggests.

“Or the tech team,” Jake adds. “Or communion, or the worship band—hell, anywhere, really, as long as it’s not the youth band.”

Hmm. Helping out with the kids sounds like a lot of work, but the tech team could be something. “Do they let teenagers do that stuff?”

“Definitely,” Jake answers. “Plus, think of how good it makes you look to your parents. You said it yourself—your dad has been all over you lately. But this? Willingly volunteering your time to serve in a ministry? That is a guaranteed way to get back on his good side.”

Holy shit. I can’t believe I haven’t thought of this before. It’s a win-win. I can put some distance between Sienna and me and get back in Dad’s good graces. I glance back at Nate in the rearview mirror. “Do you think Dad will buy it?”

Nate raises an eyebrow. “I can’t see why he wouldn’t. It’s very on-brand for you—always trying to suck up to adults.”

Jake snorts beside me, and I roll my eyes. “Gee, thanks,” I mutter sarcastically.

“Just saying,” Nate adds with a shrug.

He’s right, and we all know it. Which is exactly why I know it’ll work. “Yeah, it’s definitely worth a shot.”

“You know,” Jake adds. “I think I might tag along, too. I could definitely use a break from the endless redundancy of Sunday school every week. I mean, there’s only so many ways we unpack stories from a two-thousand-year-old book, right? Isn’t it time to move on?”

I let out a small laugh. “I think if my dad heard you say that, he’d have an aneurysm.”

“I’m starting to think our dads might be the same person.”

“I’m so sorry.”

Jake smiles. He raises his paper cup half-full of soda towards mine. “To outsmarting our shitty dads until we’re old enough to get the hell out of here.”

There’s a familiar twist of guilt in my stomach as I glance at Nate in the backseat, but I swallow it down and mirror Jake’s grin. “Cheers,” I say as I tap my cup to his.

“How was church for you today, Theo?”

I blink out of my thoughts when I realize Mom is talking to me at the dinner table. “It was fine,” I answer with a casual shrug. “The usual.”

“The usual, huh?” Dad says, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. “Church boring you these days, son?”

Shit. That’s not how I wanted to bring this up. “No, nothing like that.”

Dad watches me for a moment, then turns his attention back to his dinner.

I catch a glimpse of Nathaniel, and our eyes meet across the table. He gives me the subtlest of nods, encouraging me to press on.

I chew on the inside of my cheek. Maybe this is actually the perfect segue to bring this up. I straighten my posture to face them and clear my throat. “Actually, I’ve been thinking about changing things up a little.”

Dad stiffens, and Mom’s eyes go wide.

Nathaniel arches an eyebrow at me.

“How so?” Dad asks tensely.

“I was thinking about maybe joining the tech team on Sundays,” I blurt. “Like, maybe help with the audio and visual stuff for Big Church? I don’t know, I don’t feel like I’m getting as much out of church as I used to, so I want to try to volunteer and see if serving helps me feel closer to God.”

Mom and Dad exchange a glance, then Mom smiles at me. “Is that so?”

I nod. “Yeah. I think I could be pretty helpful when it comes to AV stuff.”

Mom beams. “That’s lovely, aroha. I’m sure your father can get you in touch with the right people at church to get you plugged in.”

Dad is studying me closely, but he nods. “Yeah, I’ll shoot Frank a text tomorrow and see if he can add you to the rotation.” He narrows his eyes. “The tech team usually has to show up extra early on Sunday mornings—like around 7 AM. Are you sure you can manage that?”

“Yeah, I think I can handle it.”

“And they don’t get to sneak out early to beat the lunch crowd.”

“I know.”

“And you need to pay attention through the whole service.”

“Michael, come on,” Mom nudges him.

“I know, Dad,” I insist confidently. “I can do it.”

“All right, all right,” Dad relents. “I’m just making sure you understand what’s expected of you as a member of the team. I have no doubt you’ll be great at the technical stuff.”

“I understand,” I say earnestly. “I’ll take it seriously, I promise.”

Dad’s expression finally softens, and he smiles. “Good,” he says, patting me firmly on the shoulder. “I’m proud of you, son.”

My chest swells at his words, like the enormous sails of a ship after a huge gust of wind. “Thanks, Dad.”

“You’re very welcome.”

I glance at Mom to see her grinning ear-to-ear.

Unsurprisingly, Nathaniel says nothing. But he doesn’t need to.

For the first time in months, my dad is proud of me.

Caleb

Have your parents said yes to the Kendling Hotel thing yet?

Theo

I’m working on it

haven’t asked yet

Caleb

You should probably do that soon, silly! It’s less than a week out now.

Theo

don’t worry, I will 3

Thursday, January 18

“The Kendling Hotel?” Mom frowns, her face twisting with disgust. “Isn’t that the old historic hotel near Grady Hospital?”

I shuffle my feet nervously. The ghost-hunting weekend trip—already fully booked and planned by Oliver’s stepmom with a full itinerary and everything—is now only three days away. I’ve procrastinated it for as long as I could, far too anxious to bring it up to either parent all week, but today is my last chance. Dad isn’t home from work yet, and Mom’s furiously typing away on her laptop, clearly distracted by something going on at work. It’s the perfect opportunity.

As long as I don’t fuck it up, that is.

“I mean, yes, but Ms. Ashley Hammond will be there, too. Oliver’s stepmom. She’s paying for the rooms.”

“Rooms? Plural?”

“Yeah, I think they’re adjoining hotel rooms.”

“How many people are going?”

I swallow, counting in my head but very carefully excluding Caleb. “Um, there’s six of us, I think. Oliver, Harrison, Elise, and our friend Wren. Plus Ashley makes five, and I’d be six.”

Mom furrows her brow. “Isn’t Wren Caleb’s friend?”

I shrug. “They’re our friend now, too.”

“What about Caleb? He’s not going?”

I shove my hands into my pockets to keep from fidgeting. I didn’t want it to come to this, but I have no choice. I have to lie. “No. He can’t. He has a family thing.”

Mom turns away from her laptop to study me with narrowed eyes. My heart is pounding violently against my ribcage, and I feel like I might puke. She’s going to figure it out. She’s going to know I’m lying. She’s my mom, she’s going to see right through?—

“Okay.”

I stare at her for several seconds before finally blinking. “Really?”

She nods. “Yes, really. You can go as long as you keep your phone’s location on so we can check on you. If you’re going anywhere else in the city, you text us. If we see you anywhere on the map that’s not the hotel, your father and I will have to assume you’ve been kidnapped and we’re coming to search for you. Understand?”

I nod eagerly. “Yeah, yeah, I understand. Thanks, Mom!”

“Be smart. Stay together. Don’t go outside after dark.”

“I know, we won’t?—”

“And keep your phone charged?—”

“Mom—”

“And if a homeless person approaches you?—”

“Mom,” I say a little louder, reaching out to touch her shoulder gently. “I know. I’ll be careful.”

Mom sighs, her lips twitching up into a smile. “I know. I trust you. And I trust Ashley, too. Just be careful.”

“I will. I promise.”

“Good.” Mom places her hand over mine and pulls me in to kiss my cheek. “I love you, aroha .”

“I love you, too, Mom.”

Unacceptable. Blatant immoral behavior.

Guilt is already building up like bile in my stomach, churning and twisting as I hear Dad’s words echoing in my head again. Maybe Dad’s right. Maybe that’s who I’ve become now. A liar. A rebellious teenager. Immoral. Unacceptable.

Before I let my thoughts spiral any further, I clear my throat. “Well, I’ll leave you to your work stuff. I’ve got homework to finish, too.”

Mom runs a hand through her hair, her dark eyes already glued back to her laptop screen. “Thanks, sweetie. Dad should be home with dinner in an hour or so.”

I nod my understanding, turning to make my way upstairs. Once I’m in the safety of my bedroom, I shake myself out of it. There’s no use dwelling on it. What’s done is done. I’ve got other things to focus on.

Theo

okay guys, I’m officially in. mom said yes to this weekend

Oliver

woooo! About time!

Caleb

Awesome!! 33

Harrison

Nice!

Elise

yay!! 3

Oliver

I was getting worried there for a bit

they didn’t care about you going overnight on a trip with your bf?

I stare at the text from Oliver for about a second or two before deciding to ignore it. Change the subject. We have a mission, after all. No room for distractions.

Theo

okay let’s talk ghosts. if we’re gonna capture something again, we need to try and replicate the conditions of St. Catherine’s as best we can

Oliver

YES! I have some plans!

I was gonna wait until Saturday to tell you but Ashley is such a paranormal/true crime freak that she actually got us some ghost-hunting tech!!

Elise

seriously?? That’s so funny!

Caleb

Sounds fun!

Harrison

*eye roll emoji*

Theo

holy shit that’s awesome!! what specific things did she get?

Oliver

shit I forgot, let me go ask her

Wren

Details, Oliver. You can’t forget the details.

Harrison

You guys know that paranormal investigation technology is a scam, right? Ashley didn’t spend money on that stuff, did she?

Elise

*gif of Michael Jackson eating popcorn*

Theo

lmao here we go

I chuckle softly to myself, then sigh with relief. Another crisis averted.

Maybe I can do this after all.

Saturday, January 20

Despite my excitement, the guilt of lying to Mom continues to haunt me over the next several days leading up to our weekend trip to the Kendling Hotel.

When Saturday morning finally arrives, I quietly pack my overnight bag and creep out of the house while Dad is on his run and Mom is still asleep. I drive straight to Caleb’s house to pick him up on the way to Oliver’s, where we’re all supposed to meet to carpool to Atlanta. Even though I haven’t talked to God in a hot minute, I whisper a quick “thank You” that Caleb lives just two neighborhoods away from Oliver, and I doubt my parents will even notice the tiny detour if they’re tracking my location.

I don’t even need to text Caleb that I’m here—I already catch a glimpse of his auburn hair in the window of his living room just before he walks out the door. As soon as our eyes meet, Caleb flashes me an adorable smile, and my worries all but melt away.

What’s done is done, I remind myself. Caleb and I are together, and everything is going to be fine.

After tossing his overnight bag into the backseat, Caleb plops into the passenger seat with a huff.

I lean across the console to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Morning, hot stuff,” I say, pitching my voice lower in an attempt to sound sexy, but it definitely comes out more as a croak.

Caleb laughs, his cheeks already tinting pink. “Hot stuff? Really?”

I give him a playful shrug, pretending not to be mortified by my own bizarre behavior. “Just trying it out.”

Before I can pull back, Caleb gently cups my face and leans in for a proper kiss. As soon as his lips are on mine, I’m a fucking goner. I sigh into the kiss, heat radiating across my chest and down my spine. My hand moves of its own accord into Caleb’s hair, fingers carding through his soft curls, and my heart soars into overdrive.

Caleb is mine, and I am his, and nothing else in the world matters.

Eventually, Caleb gently pulls away, but not before pressing our foreheads together. “We better get going,” he whispers breathlessly. “Don’t want to keep them waiting, right?”

I nod, reluctantly twisting back into the driver’s seat. “Yeah. That’d be a tragedy.”

We share another sweet smile before I put Eileen in reverse and back onto the road, interlocking our hands across the console like we always do.

The drive from Caleb’s house to Oliver’s isn’t long, so Caleb and I only have a few minutes to ourselves before we all pile into the Hammonds’ minivan. I’m grateful that Ashley offered to drive so that I don’t have to brave Atlanta traffic. I love driving Eileen in most places, but never in Atlanta.

“So,” Caleb says after a minute or two. “You never mentioned how you convinced your parents to let you go on an overnight trip with me.”

I grip the steering wheel a little tighter and keep my eyes focused on the road. “There’s nothing really to tell,” I say with a shrug. “We’ll be sharing a room with Oliver and Harrison, so it’s not like we’re alone in a hotel room together, right? Plus, Oliver’s stepmom is chaperoning. So I guess they figured it was fine.”

I decide not to mention that I lied to Mom about Caleb coming. I probably shouldn’t lie to Caleb, too, but is that what I’m doing? Am I lying to him? Am I just a liar now?

“That makes sense,” Caleb replies, stroking my thumb with his. “Is it weird that I’m still surprised?”

I manage a tight smile. “No, I’m surprised, too.” I give his hand a light squeeze. “But, hey, I’m mostly just excited! I’m ready to capture some orbs again. Or maybe even something better, you know?”

“Maybe! Didn’t you say Oliver was bringing like dowsing rods or something?”

I’m grinning ear-to-ear now, happy for a distraction. “Dowsing rods, an EMF meter, an EVP recorder, and an infrared thermometer.”

“Holy shit, really?”

“Yeah!” I exclaim eagerly. “I told him it wasn’t necessary, but apparently, his stepmom has friends who are super into ghost-hunting, so they just have this stuff lying around. So even though we only have one night, I’m really hoping we get something. Anything!”

“Nice!”

“It’ll be like Saint Catherine’s again, but way cooler this time.”

Caleb goes quiet for a few moments, and an unmistakable tension fills the car. “Theo, can I—can we talk about something?”

My stomach flips, anxiety quickly consuming me. “Oh, um—I mean, yeah, sure, of course.” I glance at my phone’s GPS. We’re four minutes away. “What’s up?”

Caleb shifts nervously in his seat, his fingers still interlocked with mine on the console between us. After several agonizing seconds, he inhales sharply. “Look, about what happened in my bed?—”

My shoulders slump. “Caleb?—”

“I know you said you’re fine and that I didn’t do anything wrong, but?—”

“You didn’t,” I insist, squeezing his hand. “It was a ‘me’ problem. Not your fault.”

“Well, still, I feel like we should?—”

I shake my head. “I’m fine, Caleb. I told you.”

“But maybe?—”

Suddenly, the soft ambient background vocals of Saint Motel are violently interrupted by my phone’s loud ringtone, and we both jump. I peer at my phone, only for the blood to drain from my face.

“It’s my dad,” I say flatly.

Caleb releases his grip on my hand, straightening in his seat. “Are you gonna answer it? I’ll be quiet.”

“Yeah, I have to—I have to take it.”

Caleb just nods, going completely silent and still.

After one more deep breath, I press the “answer” button. “H-Hey, Dad.”

“Heya, kiddo! Have you gotten to Oliver’s house yet?”

I clear my throat. “Almost there. What’s up?”

“Do you have a minute? I was on my run when you left this morning, so I didn’t get to tell you to have a good trip!”

“Oh,” I breathe, attempting a light laugh. “Thanks, Dad. Hope you have a good weekend, too!”

“I’m sure Mom already told you all the usual stuff—be careful, keep your phone on you, stay together and all that stuff.”

“Yeah, she did.”

“Good, good. Glad to hear it. You’ll text us if you need us, right?”

“Yeah, I will.”

“Okay, good.” He pauses, and I open my mouth to say goodbye, but he continues. “Hey, before I forget, I had a nice chat with Jim Buchanon yesterday, and I mentioned you coming home late that one Wednesday night when you and Jake had dinner. Sounds like Jim didn’t realize you and Jake were getting close.”

“Oh, okay,” I reply, not really sure what else to say. Why is this important?

“He’s thrilled to see Jake spending more time with friends from church, and I couldn’t agree more. You should try to have Jake over sometime soon. I think you guys could be good influences on each other.”

I roll my eyes. There it is. The ulterior motive behind Dad’s call—trying to persuade me to hang out with more people from church instead of people from school. He automatically assumes that everyone from church is a good influence while everyone from school is a bad one. Maybe Dad thinks if I hang out with more people from church, I’ll stop being bisexual. Which makes it even more amusing considering the real reason Jake and I are becoming friends in the first place.

“Did I lose you, Theo?”

“Oh, no, sorry,” I answer quickly. “I’m almost to Oliver’s house, but yeah, Jake’s pretty cool. We’ll see.”

“All right, good to hear,” Dad continues. “Well, I won’t hold you up. Be safe, be good, and have fun!”

“Thanks, Dad. Will do.”

“Love you, kiddo.”

“Love you, too.”

The line disconnects just as I’m pulling into Oliver’s driveway. I sigh as I put the car into park. “Sorry about that,” I grumble to Caleb. “He would’ve been weird if I didn’t answer.”

“It’s fine,” Caleb replies, an uneasy tone in his voice. “Who’s Jake?”

“He’s a guy from my small group at church, and he’s the son of one of my dad’s friends and one of the elders at church.”

“Ah, that makes sense,” Caleb says quietly. “You guys hang out a lot?”

Now that I’m parked, I turn to face Caleb and frown. Caleb’s gaze is trained forward, staring at the Hammonds’ open garage. “We didn’t until recently, but it’s a long story.” I gently reach across the console to place my hand on his forearm. “You ready?”

Caleb blinks out of his daze but doesn’t meet my eyes as he unbuckles his seatbelt and reaches for the door handle. “Yeah, let’s get going.”

Anxiety clutches my chest. Something’s wrong. “Hey, are you okay?”

Before I get an answer, there’s an abrupt knocking on my window that makes me jump. “Come on, slowpokes,” Oliver taunts with a mischievous grin. “Y’all can make out when we get there. Let’s get this show on the road! We’ve got a haunted hotel to get to!”

“Okay, okay, give us a second,” I call out, turning back to Caleb—only to watch the passenger door shut with Caleb already out of the car.

Shit.

Everything happens rather quickly after that. I hear the distinct groan of the Hammonds’ garage door opening right before the rest of the crew makes their way out to the navy blue Honda Odyssey parked beside me.

I remove my phone from the mount on my dashboard and scramble out of the driver’s seat just as Ashley rounds the corner. Her sandy blonde hair is tied back in a messy bun, not unlike how Oliver usually styles his hair. She smiles broadly after gulping whatever liquid she has in her massive sticker-covered steel tumbler and waves. “Good morning, Theo! Hi Caleb!”

“Hey, Mrs. Hammond,” I reply politely.

“Oh, please, none of that,” she says, waving her hand. “I’m just Ashley this weekend.”

“Is this everything you guys brought?” Oliver asks, pulling out both mine and Caleb’s overnight bags from Eileen’s backseat.

“Uh, yeah, I think so,” I reply, trying to figure out where Caleb went.

“Look who finally decided to show up,” Elise declares, punching me lightly in the shoulder.

“They’re not late,” Harrison clarifies. “We just showed up early.”

Ignoring them, I finally spot Caleb standing by Wren in the garage, who eyes me warily. Oh, shit. Have I already fucked up this early?

“Okay, everyone,” Ashley announces. “Last call for the bathroom!”

Oliver tosses my and Caleb’s bags into the trunk with the rest of the luggage, then rolls his eyes. “It’s only a forty-minute drive, Ashley. We’re not little kids.”

Ashley gives Oliver a pointed look as she pulls her keys out of her huge handbag. “You say that now, but I’m not stopping until we’re in the parking deck of the hotel.”

As soon as the doors are unlocked, Oliver yanks open the sliding back door and practically leaps inside, somehow contorting his tall, lanky body to crawl into the third row of seats.

“Dude, are you sure you want to be in the very back?” Harrison asks skeptically. “Will your legs even fit back there?”

“Shit, maybe not,” Oliver mutters, his voice muffled. “Or wait, maybe I can—ow, shit, can you guys just?—”

“Language, Oliver!” Ashley squeaks. “The girls may not be here, but I still don’t want to hear you swearing every few seconds.”

“My bad.”

By “the girls,” Ashley is referring to her younger daughters from a previous marriage, Bella and Charli. Yes, they are named after characters from the Twilight series. I distinctly remember the annoyance on Oliver’s face the first time he told us about his new stepsisters. And Elise’s high-pitched, uncontrollable laughter that followed.

“Oliver, why don’t you and your freakazoid legs sit shotgun?” Wren suggests, suddenly right behind me with Caleb in tow. “I’ll sit in the back with the lovebirds.”

“I hope you’re not referring to Elise and me,” Harrison grumbles. “I’m not crawling back there.”

“We will!” I volunteer eagerly, suddenly remembering that Ashley is pretty cool and doesn’t care about two boys holding hands. I glance over at Caleb with pleading eyes. “Is that cool with you, Caleb?”

Caleb shrugs. “Sure.”

I pretend his indifference doesn’t feel like a gut punch.

“Ugh, fine,” Oliver groans, climbing back out of the van with a grunt. “Guess that means I’m in charge of the music then!”

Ashley snorts. “We’ll see about that.”

With Oliver out of the way, Wren climbs into the back row first, followed by Caleb and me. Harrison and Elise take their seats in the middle row, and before I know it, we’re pulling out of the driveway and heading towards the interstate. Oliver and Ashley bicker about the music only briefly before settling on some old-school Lady Gaga. Their dynamic feels more like a sibling relationship than a parent and child, which I guess makes sense considering their age gap.

I settle my hand in the space between our legs, and although it takes longer than usual, Caleb slowly moves to interlock our fingers. Relief washes over me at the gesture, and I relax against him. Something still doesn’t feel right, though, and I know I have to do something.

“Hey, are you okay?” I whisper, just loud enough for him to hear.

“I’m fine,” Caleb answers tersely.

Dread fills my stomach again. I have to fix this. “I’m sorry we didn’t get to finish our conversation in the car,” I say. “We can try again when we get there, okay?”

Caleb stiffens slightly beside me. “Promise?”

I nod, then extend the pinky of my other hand out to him. “Promise.”

Caleb links his pinky with mine, and I can practically feel the tension melting away as I rest my head on his shoulder. He presses a quick kiss to the top of my head and holds my hand for the rest of the drive.