Lizzy, Colt, Becca, Riley, and Hannah had been his closest friends since starting high school two years earlier. Becca and Hannah had run cross country with him for the Y all through junior high school, and he’d met Lizzy, Colt, and Riley through classes they’d had together freshman year. Even though they’d all been close friends, Lizzy and Colt had secretly had crushes on each other and only started hanging out, just the two of them, over their summer break. They’d finally made their couple status “official” the Saturday night before school had started, each of them wanting to start the new school year together and without any pressure from their peers to finally take that next step.
Wes was happy for them. They were a great match and had a pretty solid foundation since they’d been friends for two years before becoming a couple.
All their other friends had been understandably excited for them as well, but after a solid week of Lizzy and Colt’s continuous hand-holding and cuddling, the luster was wearing off for most of their other friends.
Shaking that thought off, Wes turned his focus to the time he’d had with Patton during PE. Patton was someone Wes had never even noticed before. Even though the guy was solid and built like a brick wall and a couple of inches shorter than Wes, he just had the demeanor and personality of someone who would prefer to fade into the background than stand out in a crowd. Wes wondered if he wasn’t new in town.
He had seemed willing enough to approach Wesley though, and if Wes had to admit it, he kinda liked that Patton had known who he was in the first place.
It wasn’t that Wesley went out of his way to try to be popular or even that he’d made a name for himself around campus as one of the “out and proud,” it was just somehow nice knowing that even a quiet, relatively shy kid like Patton had known who he was.
The PE assignment seemed like it might be kinda cool though. It seemed like a pretty good way to get the kids who normally hated working out or being involved at all to participate on a smaller scale and possibly keep them from being so embarrassed or awkward in front of a large class-sized group.
Wes wondered what Patton had thought of it.
If he had to admit it, Wesley had been both embarrassed and impressed over his conversation with Patton. It wasn’t like Wes claimed to be uber-fit or anything, but when it came to running, he could usually beat just about anyone. Weight lifting and strength exercises, however, were not his forte. For one thing, he was way too skinny for his height. He had long lean muscles and most of those were in his legs, not his upper body. Being shown up by Patton on just about everything outside of running was a little disconcerting.
But, the guy was built. And even if Patton didn’t see that about himself, Wes had noticed it almost immediately. Sure, his physique might be hidden under a few extra pounds, but it was better than being a rail with hardly any substance to speak of. Patton’s wide shoulders, broad back, and narrower waist would look amazing if he toned up and slimmed down.
Wes figured they were both going to benefit from their new assignment. Hopefully, he could gain a few pounds and add some muscle to his upper body during the process.
Polishing off his popcorn, Wes shrugged off his headphones and grabbed up his backpack, finally feeling ready to tackle some homework before heading off to cross country practice.
— — —
It wasn’t until Wednesday that Wesley caught sight of Patton again standing four people ahead of him in line for lunch. When Patton finished ordering and turned around, Wes called out, “Hey, Patton. How’s it going?”
Patton started and looked over, seeking out whoever had spoken to him. His eyes fixed on Wesley and widened a little. “Oh. Hey, Wesley. Um, it’s going alright,” he muttered then glanced down at his tray and looked back up to Wes, almost looking guilty for some reason.
Wes quickly realized that Patton was carrying a tray with two slices of pizza and a can of Coke on it. “Pizza’s not half bad here, huh?” Wes asked, trying to ease the situation and make idle conversation with the other guy.
“Um. Yeah. I guess it’s okay.”
“I could probably eat pizza every day for the rest of my life and never get tired of it,” Wes commented, adding a dreamy sigh to exaggerate his point.
Patton gave a tentative smile and his shoulders seemed to loosen up a little. “I know what you mean. Between cereal and pizza”—he shook his head with a rueful smirk—“I’d never go hungry.”
Wes grinned and moved up in the line. “Where are you sitting? You should come sit with me and my friends,” Wes offered before he could think better of it. Patton seemed equally as taken aback by Wes’s offer as he was, but he wasn’t about to bumble around and take it back or anything. Why shouldn’t he at least be nice and make the offer to someone he seemed to get along with? If Patton agreed, Wes was sure his friends would welcome him into their fold. Besides, it didn’t mean Patton would sit with them every day, but if he was new in town, maybe he could use someone to show him the ropes, help him make some new friends. Wes could do that. He just hadn’t really been thinking before he’d blurted the words out.
“Um.” Patton glanced over his shoulder like he was looking for someone. He turned his gaze back to Wes. “I usually just eat in the choir room. Where do you guys sit?”
“Hang on a sec while I order, then you can walk over with me if you want. No pressure, though. You probably have your own things that you’d rather do than eat with us,” Wes said and turned his attention to ordering two pieces of pizza and a can of root beer.
Once his tray and change were handed over, Wes turned back to find Patton still standing there waiting for him. “You wanna come?” Wes hedged, nicking his chin out toward his table.
Patton shrugged. “If you’re sure it’s cool with your friends.”
Wes nodded, a smile forming on his face. “It’s cool. Everyone is super chill.” He motioned for Patton to follow him, and together they wound their way through the throngs of other students toward the table near the back of the lunchroom that Wes and his friends usually sat at.
As they approached, Wes saw Lizzy snuggled into Colt’s side as she giggled at something he must have said, both of them sharing a paper boat full of nachos. Hannah and Becca were sitting at one end of their table, each of them engrossed with something on their phones, while Riley had a book out and seemed to be scrambling to finish some notes or a last-minute assignment.
No one even looked up as Wes slid his tray down and nodded for Patton to do the same.
“Hey, new guy,” someone called out and Wes could tell it was Hannah’s voice even though when he looked over again she hadn’t appeared to have moved at all.
Patton glanced at Wesley and he shrugged.
“Hi,” Patton returned.
“We have history and chemistry together,” Hannah replied as if that explained everything. Wes looked back and forth between the two, and when neither said anything more, he sat down and popped the top on his soda.
Patton followed his lead and though he seemed a little stiff, he still sat and adjusted his tray until he seemed satisfied, then opened his soda as well.
After a few slightly awkward beats and Wes’s first bite of pizza, he picked up their earlier conversation. “So you’re in choir?”
Patton had his pizza raised almost ready to take a bite but lowered his hand with a nod. “Yeah.”
“You any good?” Wes asked after a moment and took another bite of his cheesy goodness. He usually liked more toppings than just pepperoni on his pizza, but whatever, it was school lunch and they had to please the masses.
Patton chewed his bite as well and when he swallowed he shrugged. “I guess.” But it sounded more like a question.
Wes eyed him but let it go. “So you usually eat with your choir friends?”
Patton nodded again. “We’re not allowed to eat in the choir room but we can eat and hang out in the hallways. It’s quieter and we’re all friends mostly so it’s fun.”
Wes nodded. Using his pie
ce of pizza, he pointed down to the end of the table. “Hannah, Becca, and I all run together. We run cross country in the fall for the Y, then run track in the spring for the school. We always have stories to tell about meets or practices or who’s dating who in the club, so I totally get that. Wouldn’t really want to eat in the locker room though.”
Patton snorted then coughed as the bite he’d been chewing must have gone down the wrong way. His coughing finally drew the attention of a few of their tablemates and Becca, Lizzy, and Colt all shifted their eyes between Patton and him.
Patton calmed and took a swig of his soda as his eyes watered a little and his face turned red.
“You alright?” Colt asked. He probably knew more about what to do for Patton than anyone else at their table. His dad was a physical therapist and Colt had taken an interest in the medical field as well.
Patton nodded and cleared his throat. He tried to reply but all that came out was a croak. He took another drink of soda and tried again. “Yeah. Just went down the wrong way. Funny guy over here made me laugh in the middle of a bite.”
Wes chuckled with a grin on his face. “Maybe less conversation and more eating, huh? Wouldn’t want it to be too much for you to do both at the same time.”
Patton’s eyes snapped to his and he snorted again. Wes was glad to see that the guy hadn’t taken offense and was only pretending to be outraged. “Well, if this is the kind of treatment I can expect sitting with you, maybe I’m better off in the choir room.”
Everyone laughed at that and finally Lizzy asked, “What’s your name?”
“Patton.” He cleared his throat again then shrugged. “My dad is a history geek.”
Lizzy nodded with a smile. “I’m Lizzy. This is Colt.” She patted Colt on the chest. “It sounds like you might know Hannah, and that’s Becca.” Lizzy pointed out the two other girls. Riley had finally surfaced from his notebook and was looking their way. “That’s Riley, and if Wes tries to scare you away, we all know plenty of tea on him to keep his mouth shut.” She stared right at Wes, daring him to say anything, then grinned and laughed as they tried to face-off with stern looks but failed miserably.
A quick glance at Patton proved he too was smiling and seemed a little more at ease with the tension broken around their group.
“What brings you to our little dysfunctional corner of the lunchroom today?” Lizzy asked lightly then plucked up one of their last nachos and shoved it into her mouth.
Patton glanced at Wes then back to Lizzy.
“We have a PE thing we have to do together and I saw him in line so I asked if he wanted to sit with us,” Wes responded, saving Patton from having to explain. “Geez, Liz. I didn’t know there was going to be an interview process for him to sit here or anything,” he teased sarcastically.
Lizzy stuck her tongue out at him but otherwise ignored him. “It’s going to totally suck for you to be paired with this loser.” She gestured to Wes. “I’m sorry you got stuck with him,” she said to Patton, drawing a smile from him that seemed a little more relaxed.
“Yeah. Dude’s annoying enough as a friend,” Colt added. “I’d hate to have to be partnered with him for an actual assignment.”
Wes laughed and tore off a piece of pizza crust then chucked it right at Colt’s face. It bounced off his glasses and ended up on the table where Colt shrugged carelessly and popped it into his mouth. Lizzy wrinkled her nose but still looked at Colt with those adoringly wide eyes.
“Don’t listen to a thing these bozos tell you,” Wes said to Patton. “I am an excellent partner to have for any school assignment and you should feel lucky to have me.”
“Yeah,” Riley chimed in with a smirk on his face. “Lucky to have you leave.”
Everyone oh’d and ah’d and laughed their asses off. Wes just shrugged with a huge grin on his face and winked at Patton while shoving the rest of his pizza into his mouth.
Patton smiled and shook his head, probably wondering what he’d gotten himself into by joining their little group for the day. He didn’t say anything else but listened to everyone’s good-natured ribbing as they all finished their lunches and talk turned to the upcoming football game and the weekend.
When Patton confessed that he’d never been to a football game other than to sing with the choir, their group erupted in declarations that Patton needed to join them that Friday at the game. It was going to be their second home game of the season and everyone insisted Patton needed to show some school spirit.
Lizzy took it upon herself to organize their small group, proclaiming the girls would wear yellow and the boys would wear green. Patton looked a little overwhelmed by being looped into the whole endeavor and seemed relieved when the bell finally rang, signaling the end of lunch.
As everyone scattered like rats on a sinking ship, Wes fell into stride with Patton as they headed to the locker rooms.
“Hey, listen,” Wes said as they walked down the hall dodging people and groups as they went. “There’s no pressure about the game Friday night. Really. If it’s not your thing, that’s totally fine. Lizzy can be a bit overeager if an idea strikes her and you’re not going to hurt her feelings if you don’t want to go.”
Patton nodded. “It’s okay. It’s not that it doesn’t sound like fun or anything. I just usually babysit for my sisters on Friday nights so my parents can go out. I’ll talk to my dad and mom and just tell them I have plans. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
Wes grinned. “Cool. How many sisters do you have?”
“Four,” Patton replied with a rueful shake of his head. Wes’s eyes widened at the news. “My parents are divorced. I have two sisters from when my mom and dad each remarried.”
Wes nodded in understanding. “My parents are divorced too. Although, neither of them have remarried. I have a brother who’s a freshman though.”
Patton nodded and as they approached the locker room, he opened the door and let Wes precede him inside. The smell hit him like a visceral thing, climbing into his nose through the air. Year upon year of smelly gym bags and masculine sweat. Wes grinned to himself. He loved that smell. Anything that reminded him of sweaty bodies working hard and masculine muscles flexing never failed to get his blood pumping a little faster.
He glanced at Patton from the corner of his eye. The locker room was one place Wes was always careful about letting his eyes wander or letting his reactions go unchecked. He wondered if Patton knew he was gay. Would it change anything about whether or not they hung out more? Would Patton even want to hang out more? Would Wes want to hang out with Patton more?
Inviting Patton to eat lunch with him and his crew had been an absolutely spur of the moment thing. Would tomorrow be back to normal?
“Hey, dude,” someone shouted. “Watch it!”
Wes snapped back to reality, blinking to find himself halfway through the bustling locker room with no Patton to be seen and half-naked boys everywhere he turned. Not a bad situation to find himself in for sure, but unfortunately, not something he could allow himself to indulge in. He had plenty of practice with sneaking glances and being discrete though.
Shaking off his wayward thoughts, Wes made his way to his locker and quickly set about changing into his gym clothes. Another hour of physical torture ready to commence in T minus five.
Chapter 5
Friday afternoon, Patton stood in his bedroom surveying every green shirt he owned. Who knew one person could actually come up with seven different green shirts from two drawers and a closet?
Problem was: which shirt was he going to wear? Never in his life had Patton taken this much time to choose one shirt before.
He’d broached the subject of going out to the football game as soon as his dad had come home from work Wednesday evening. Patton had squirmed as a slow smile had formed on his dad’s face.
“You finally have someone that you’re interested in to be taking a Friday for yourself, huh?” his dad had asked.
Patton had blushed furiously and refuted his da
d’s words, claiming it was just a new group of friends that had invited him along to the game.
Infuriatingly, his dad had simply winked and assured him it was fine.
Patton still wanted to blush every time he thought about it. It wasn’t like that. He didn’t want to go because of anyone. But, his dad did have a point in one regard… Why was Patton all of a sudden asking to have a Friday night off? He hadn't taken a Friday night off for himself in ages.
He hadn’t thought too deeply on that. Only realizing the opportunity for what it was, a chance to hang out with a new group of friends.
He plucked up a darker green shirt with a cream-colored four-leafed clover on the left chest pocket. The darker green would help him hide his size, and as it got later into the night, he would blend in a little bit more.
He pulled the shirt over his head and checked his appearance in the mirror on the back of his closet door. His new haircut was behaving itself for once and Patton ran his fingers through the fringe on his forehead, pushing a few wayward strands back into place. His jeans were the pair he thought of as looking the best on him, though that didn’t directly translate to the best fitting pair he had. But for a night at a school football game, it wasn’t too big of a deal, they just pinched a little when he sat down.
Glancing at the clock on his nightstand, Patton snatched up his shoes and sat on the edge of his double bed to pull them on.
As he was tying up his laces, he heard the tell-tale sounds of pounding feet racing down the hallway. Three, two, one…
“Patty!” his youngest sister, Tallie, cried before she was even in his doorway. She was giggling her head off and the sound of heavier footsteps thudding after her made him smile. A split second later her small frame rounded his bedroom doorway and she barreled straight toward him as he quickly stood and scooped her up into his arms.
“She’s going to get me!” Tallie shrieked with laughter and clung to him with her little fists around his neck.
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