Page 20 of Keeping Kyle

“Nah. We’re too close for that. We even stopped fooling around not too much after we got caught because it started to feel a little weird.” He didn’t move to retake my hand, and I skated on my own—which I had to not fixate on. “What about you? How’d you come out?”

“For all the time that my parents wanted me to focus on things to earn money, they also wanted me to start dating. I finally came out at sixteen to get them to stop asking about girls. They said all the right things, but there was an undertone of disappointment. I’ve still never brought anyone home. The few people in college I dated never really clicked anyway.”

He nodded and looked a little sad.

“Sorry,” I said, anxiousness exploding in my chest. “Too much serious talk.” I tried to laugh it off, but even to my ears, it sounded fake and even sadder.

“We’ve got about twenty minutes before they’re gonna kick us out of here. Let’s see if we can add to your speed and get you to move to the music.” Kyle allowed me to put my discomfort aside by focusing on what we were really here to do. As he’d done earlier, he relaxed me. “What do you think?”

“I trust you to not let me fall on my ass. Let’s do it.”

ELEVEN

KYLE

“LET ME GET THIS STRAIGHT. You want to see Austin again, even though he was late to the first date and he as much as said he had trouble not being completely work focused?”

I misread how Bobby would take the news. Maybe I should have kept the flaws to myself, but I wanted his full opinion.

“I get that he’s handsome and totally your type. But I know you. You’re not going to tolerate anyone who’s so focused on work, especially since you historically have had worries over your own relationship commitments.”

Bobby’s voice boomed through my car, and I hit the volume on the steering wheel to bring it down. I’d held back calling him immediately after our skate date yesterday because I wanted to think through what I might be signing myself up for. So I’d churned it over on the flight home this morning and through practice. Now, as I drove to Mom’s to sign some things she had for a charity auction, it had seemed like a good time to talk.

“He seemed to know it was not good to be late or be on the phone. Our skate outing went perfectly.”

“Much as I want you to find someone, this guy hasn’t exactly started off on the best foot.”

“I’m going to give him a chance, especially now that we’re back home. See what happens.”

“Where are you guys going?”

Thankfully, he stopped trying to talk me out of having another date. Although if this went south, there’d be an I told you so followed by an extensive analysis—the hazard of a brother who’d become a therapist.

“Kennedy’s wife is opening her first gallery show next week. The entire team is going.” Kennedy captained the team. Adriana, his wife, was a talented artist, and I loved seeing her get the recognition of this show because her work was gorgeous.

“That’s good. At least you’re doing something a little different from dinner and a movie.”

“Exactly. Hang out, maybe talk about art, and who knows what else. Besides, we’ve already had dinner, so we know what that’s like.”

“Just make sure to take care of yourself, bro. Don’t give this guy your heart until you know he’s right for you.”

“I don’t think anybody’s making long-term commitments. But good advice as always.”

I might have lied to him.

During the skate, as we talked about our families and childhoods, I saw the possibilities of a relationship. Not only that, I genuinely liked being around him. The opening would allow us to see more of how we meshed, how we did around others, and if he could be on time and attentive.

“Okay, I’m at Mom’s. Hope you get home soon.”

“It ain’t looking good man; GPS just added ten minutes.”

“Yikes. Alright, I’ll let you get back to your audiobook.”

“Cool. Take care, bro.”

Mom still lived in the house Bobby and I grew up in. She’d done a fair bit of renovation after we moved out—part of which I’d helped pay off a couple of years ago. As she’d rightfully said, she no longer had two kids, so she might as well transform those rooms.

Mine became her home office. Bobby’s ended up as the guest room. She’s also made over the kitchen into the ultramodern style she’d always wanted. She loved cooking and had even talked about ditching her work in human resources to become a chef.