so I couldn’t use it. It felt like I should know his name, like I was missing something.
“It’s Gabriel. You were my best friend until…well, until we were eight,” he said and it was painfully obvious that he was trying to avoid that elephant over by the flowers.
“We used to play paramedics?” I asked and his head shot up.
“You remember?” He asked hopefully, but I shook my head and his face fell. We sat down at a nearby table.
“To be honest, I don’t remember a lot of what my life was like before…well, before I was eight. My mom and I were just looking through a scrapbook and she was telling me about it. Did you go into law? My mom said that’s the direction you were headed.” I said, trying to make him feel more comfortable.
“Yes. I’m a Junior Partner at my father’s firm,” he said with something akin to pride. “I heard you became a doctor? Went up a few steps from a paramedic, didn’t you?” His friendly smile relaxed me enough to smile as well.
For a while we talked about different aspects of our lives, not touching on the obvious topic, until finally he brought it up.
“Ethan. I’m sorry for what happened that day,” he said, looking at the table. I gaped at him. “If I hadn’t played sick that day…If I’d have been there, maybe….Damn it, Ethan, you were my best friend and I’m sorry, I’m so fucking sorry I let that happen to you.”
“Gabriel, you didn’t let anything happen to me. You were a little boy. Did it ever occur to you that maybe he would have taken you too? Then, there still would have been nothing you could do about it and your life would have been ruined like mine was,” I said, standing up from the table, not wanting to talk about it (especially not there in front of the garden club tea party). As I turned to leave, a couple of guys walked past the table and asked Gabriel if he’d finally found a boyfriend. I turned back around and saw that Gabriel was red-faced.
“Gabriel,” I said cautiously and put my hand on his shoulder. He turned around, his face was defiant.
“Yes, Ethan. I’m gay,” he said, almost petulantly. “And I think I’ve had about as much fun as I can stand today, so I’ll be going.” He shrugged off my hand and started walking toward the house, but I followed him. When we were almost to the front door, I look around to see if we were alone.
“Would you like to get together for dinner sometime?” I blurted out. I’m not sure what made me say it, but once it was out there, I wasn’t sorry that I had. Turning, he faced me with a hard expression.
“What, you think that’s funny?” he asked and then he must have seen something in my face because his face softened. “You’re serious, aren’t you? You mean like a date?” I nodded.
“I…I had no idea you were…I think I’d like that,” he said gently.
“I think I would too. I’ve…I’ve never been on a date before,” I stammered and he smiled.
“I’d be honored to take you on your first date, Ethan. May I have your phone?” I handed it to him and he put his number in before I took his and did the same.
As he closed the door, my mother came out from around the corner and hugged me gently. “I’m so happy that the two of you were able to reconnect. You were inseparable when you were younger. And, well…Gabriel’s been very hard on himself since you were taken. He always felt like it was his fault. That’s so much pressure for a child to bear.” We were interrupted by a chirp from my cell phone. I checked it to find a text from Jayden.
Need reinforcements? Shall we call in the cavalry?
I laughed lighter and freer than I had in a very long time. With a strange expression, my mother looked at me, so I showed her the phone and she smiled. I’d seen her smile more that day than the entire two years I’d been there before I had left for college. It was refreshing, made her look younger and more like the woman I remembered.
“Go, I’ll make your
“It’s Gabriel. You were my best friend until…well, until we were eight,” he said and it was painfully obvious that he was trying to avoid that elephant over by the flowers.
“We used to play paramedics?” I asked and his head shot up.
“You remember?” He asked hopefully, but I shook my head and his face fell. We sat down at a nearby table.
“To be honest, I don’t remember a lot of what my life was like before…well, before I was eight. My mom and I were just looking through a scrapbook and she was telling me about it. Did you go into law? My mom said that’s the direction you were headed.” I said, trying to make him feel more comfortable.
“Yes. I’m a Junior Partner at my father’s firm,” he said with something akin to pride. “I heard you became a doctor? Went up a few steps from a paramedic, didn’t you?” His friendly smile relaxed me enough to smile as well.
For a while we talked about different aspects of our lives, not touching on the obvious topic, until finally he brought it up.
“Ethan. I’m sorry for what happened that day,” he said, looking at the table. I gaped at him. “If I hadn’t played sick that day…If I’d have been there, maybe….Damn it, Ethan, you were my best friend and I’m sorry, I’m so fucking sorry I let that happen to you.”
“Gabriel, you didn’t let anything happen to me. You were a little boy. Did it ever occur to you that maybe he would have taken you too? Then, there still would have been nothing you could do about it and your life would have been ruined like mine was,” I said, standing up from the table, not wanting to talk about it (especially not there in front of the garden club tea party). As I turned to leave, a couple of guys walked past the table and asked Gabriel if he’d finally found a boyfriend. I turned back around and saw that Gabriel was red-faced.
“Gabriel,” I said cautiously and put my hand on his shoulder. He turned around, his face was defiant.
“Yes, Ethan. I’m gay,” he said, almost petulantly. “And I think I’ve had about as much fun as I can stand today, so I’ll be going.” He shrugged off my hand and started walking toward the house, but I followed him. When we were almost to the front door, I look around to see if we were alone.
“Would you like to get together for dinner sometime?” I blurted out. I’m not sure what made me say it, but once it was out there, I wasn’t sorry that I had. Turning, he faced me with a hard expression.
“What, you think that’s funny?” he asked and then he must have seen something in my face because his face softened. “You’re serious, aren’t you? You mean like a date?” I nodded.
“I…I had no idea you were…I think I’d like that,” he said gently.
“I think I would too. I’ve…I’ve never been on a date before,” I stammered and he smiled.
“I’d be honored to take you on your first date, Ethan. May I have your phone?” I handed it to him and he put his number in before I took his and did the same.
As he closed the door, my mother came out from around the corner and hugged me gently. “I’m so happy that the two of you were able to reconnect. You were inseparable when you were younger. And, well…Gabriel’s been very hard on himself since you were taken. He always felt like it was his fault. That’s so much pressure for a child to bear.” We were interrupted by a chirp from my cell phone. I checked it to find a text from Jayden.
Need reinforcements? Shall we call in the cavalry?
I laughed lighter and freer than I had in a very long time. With a strange expression, my mother looked at me, so I showed her the phone and she smiled. I’d seen her smile more that day than the entire two years I’d been there before I had left for college. It was refreshing, made her look younger and more like the woman I remembered.
“Go, I’ll make your
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