Page 58 of The Build-a-Boyfriend Project

Well, he doesn’t miss it exactly. Eli grabs ahold of the blue rock, but there’s not enough grip, or really any grip at all. And he makes the mistake of letting go with his other hand far too early, meaning there’s nothing keeping him on the wall.

So he falls.

“Peter!” he calls out, yanking on Peter’s shirt, but the fabric slips free of Eli’s chalky hands, and he just falls and falls and falls.

A whole five feet, landing on the cushy floor and bouncing for a bit before he settles.

“Eli!” Peter yelps out, leaping effortlessly back to the floor as he crouches in front of Eli. “Are you okay?”

Eli can tell that Peter’s totally caught off guard when he sees the smile on Eli’s face, Eli picking his head up with a wide grin, laughter spilling past his lips.

“That was fun!” Eli does his best to bounce on the floor.

Peter smiles, letting out an exasperated sound. “I’m glad you’re finally having a good time.” Peter starts to sit beside Eli, then scoots back. “Come on, get away from the wall, we’ll take a breather.”

Eli looks back, following Peter’s lead as they move toward where they set their things.

“So, I’ve been dying to ask,” Peter starts, squeezing water into his open mouth.

“Shoot.” Eli does the same, but not without spilling some all over his chin.

“Why did you let me choose the date night?” he asks. “I thought this entire experience was to teach me how to date? I don’t see what this taught me.”

“Well,” Eli starts to say. “I wanted you to pick what we did tonight because dating is a partnership. Both parties have to be enthusiastic, they have to show interest in one another, in their hobbies. If I were a real date, I like to think tonight would’ve exposed me to a part of your personality.”

“And that’s a good thing?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?”

“I don’t know,” Peter says, suddenly quiet. “When we got here, I was worried I’d picked the wrong thing. Rock climbing can be a lot for someone.” He lets out a shaky breath. “And you’ve seen my personality.”

“Do you care about rock climbing?” Eli asks.

Peter seems surprised, like he’d never expected anyone to ask him such a question. “Yeah, I guess I do. To a certain extent.”

“You guess?” Eli pokes a little harder.

“Yeah, I mean it’s fun. I’ve always liked working out, feeling strong. It’s why I stuck around on the football team for so long, even when I hated it.”

Peter looks away, like that isn’t the whole answer. Eli can spy a something just below the surface.

“Then why push yourself?” Eli feels like he can see where this is going from a mile away, but he wants Peter to be the one to talk about it. Interviewing means asking the right questions, knowing exactly where to steer things in order to get the most information.

“I guess, I dunno, I was afraid.”

“Why?”

Peter smiles for the briefest of moments. It’s an uncomfortable expression, and Eli almost slams on the brakes.

“Growing up in Comer, it was scary. Being one of like four Asian kids at school already made me someone that people didn’t like. If they knew I was queer, I can’t imagine how they would’ve reacted. I guess I just wanted to be someone that others didn’t mess with. I never wanted to give people a reason to think I was weak.”

Eli sits in silence, suddenly regretting bringing this up at the gym of all places.

Then, Peter chuckles. It’s a soft sound. “Sorry, shouldn’t have gotten so dour out of nowhere.”

“No, it’s okay.” Eli hopes that Peter believes him.

“Can I ask you a question?”