by Drew Hunt
JJ heard the teacher, but kept his gaze on the jock. “Do we have a problem?” he asked quietly.
“Uh, no, no problem.”
JJ turned to face the teacher and nodded.
The teacher shook his head but moved on.
“Fag lover,” the jock muttered, causing JJ to tense his muscles.
“JJ, don’t,” Milton said. “He’s not worth getting suspended for.”
“I got a reputation at my last school,” JJ said quietly to the basketball player. “Want to know what it was for?”
The guy shrugged, trying to affect an air of indifference.
“I was suspended, and later expelled, for beating up big tough asshole jocks who picked on kids who were smaller than them. ’Cause I figured these big macho guys should only pick on people their own size.” JJ held his arms out. “Come on, gimme your best shot. But be warned. I fight back and I always win.”
The guy just stood there.
“But, see, you’d have more to lose than me.” JJ smiled. “I don’t give a shit if I get suspended, but if you need a sports scholarship to get to college, then you’ll be shit out of luck if you so much as look at Milton the wrong way. Sure, I might get kicked out of here, but I’ll make damn certain I take you down with me. You don’t want that, do you?” JJ made sure his speech was quiet, slow, and outwardly friendly.
The guy shook his head ‘no.’
JJ smiled again. “So all you have to do is apologize to Milton and leave him alone from now on. You can do that, can’t you?”
The jock hesitated, then turned to Milton and said, “Whatever. Sorry, man.”
JJ nodded. “Nice doing business with you.”
JJ walked with Milton down the hallway, Milton sticking to JJ like glue.
“You were…awesome,” Milton whispered.
“I hate bullies. But once you stand up to them they usually run away crying for their mommas.”
“Easy for you to say, you’ve got the size and the muscles to defend yourself if you need to.”
JJ thought it was more a case of having the right frame of mind, projecting a confident image.
“Did you really get expelled from your old school back in Texas?”
JJ smiled. “Nah, just got an hour’s detention. The vice principal understood what had gone down.”
“Which was?”
“This bigger kid on the football team was messing with a small freshman. I asked him to stop. He didn’t, so we had a problem…”
“Wow.”
JJ hated drawing attention to himself, but he hated bullies even more. Shaking his head, he said, “What’s your next class?”
“Computer science.”
He nodded and decided to walk Milton to the computer labs, just in case.
* * * *
“What was the title again?” JJ asked, staring at a long rack of X-Men comics wrapped in clear plastic bags with a piece of cardboard inside to keep everything flat. He was surprised they took all that trouble for a comic book.
He and Maggie had talked, and they’d decided to buy Milton a replacement of his torn comic as a birthday gift. Maggie had kissed JJ and told him she always knew he was sweet and thoughtful. JJ wasn’t sure about that, but, hey, it’d gotten him a pretty hot kiss. But when he’d tried to steal second base Maggie tagged him out, leaving him frustrated.
“Here it is,” Maggie said, plucking the comic wrapped in its protective bag from the rack. “But.”
“What?”
“It’s thirty bucks.”
“Holy daylight robbery, Batman. We better tell Commissioner Gordon.”
Maggie snickered. “Wrong comic, doofus.”
Maggie had warned him that some of the more collectable back issues and special editions were kinda expensive, but thirty bucks?
“I just got my allowance,” JJ said, scratching his head. “So let’s get it.”
“Aw, you’re so sweet.” Maggie leaned in and kissed JJ’s cheek. “Milton will be really pumped. He already thinks you walk on water as it is.”
“Huh?”
But Maggie had turned the corner and JJ had to walk quickly to catch up.
JJ saw his best buddy standing by the racks of new releases.
“It’s okay, your secret’s safe with us,” JJ said, sneaking up behind Steve and plucking the Batman comic out of his hand.
Steve jumped and turned around. “I, uh…what are you two doing here?”
“Hi, Steve.” Maggie smiled.
“Hi, Maggie.”
“We were just passing.” JJ smirked.
It was true; the comic shop was next to his local subway station.
“Never saw you read a comic before.” Steve shook his head.
“Could say the same about you,” JJ said. “How long have me and you been buds?”
“Since freshmen year when you moved to New York.”
He and Steve had connected almost instantly. Steve was the catcher on the baseball team and JJ was one of the pitchers.
“And like I said.”—JJ stared at the comic—“I never knew you were into Batman.”
“I prefer Superman.” Steve took the comic from JJ, put it back on the rack, and picked up one with Superman on the cover. “And what about you? X-Men?”
“It’s a birthday present. For Milton.”
Steve’s expression clouded.
“That kid I had lunch with today.”
Steve nodded.
“He got roughed up the other day and his comic got ripped,” Maggie put in. “So we thought we’d replace it for him.”
“Right.”
“You okay, man?” JJ asked.
“Yeah.” But JJ wasn’t convinced. “You an’ me still on for watching football Sunday?”
It had become their usual practice to go to one or the other’s place to watch a pro game, no matter what sport was on TV at the time.
“You boys,” Maggie said.
“Sure,” JJ put in. “Your turn.”
“Could I come to your place instead? Janet said she’d invited her friends to come visit, and…” Steve shook his head.
JJ laughed. “You don’t want to be around a bunch of twelve-year-old girls?”
“Hell, no.” Steve shuddered. “It’s all right for you, Janet has a crush on you.”
It was true, Steve’s little sister seemed to really like him, always asking him questions about Texas and how many bulls, or horses, or whatever he’d ridden. JJ hated to disappoint her by telling her he’d never been on an animal’s back, save for the carousel horses at the county fair when he’d been real small. And he wasn’t about to admit that.
“So it’s all right if I watch the game at your place?”
JJ shrugged, it didn’t bother him overmuch, but this was the third time recently Steve had asked to watch the game at JJ’s, when it was his turn to have JJ over. “But my dads will probably want to watch with us.” Although what usually happened was Calvin would soon get bored and would go off and do some work in his home office.
“Great! Mr. B’s cool.” Steve smiled.
Maggie grinned and shook her head.
“What?” JJ asked her.
“Nothing. We going to go pay for this? I need to get home and start on my homework.”
JJ looked at his wristwatch. “Aw, I was kinda hopin’ we’d go back to my place, my dads are still at work and…”
“Nice try, hotshot.” Maggie grinned. “You’re working out with your dad at the gym, and like I said, I’ve got homework. Mr. Palmer said he was giving a test Monday morning and I’m still not sure what all went on with the Roanoke colony.”
“They all disappeared,” Steve said, keeping a straight face.
Maggie shook her head. “Uh, yeah, thanks. I’ll try and remember that.”
“Steven Morrison at your service, ma’am.” He sketched a bow.
Despite the goofy image Steve put on, JJ knew his friend was really smart. A good thing, because Steve’s folks expected him to get an MBA and go into banking l
ike his dad.
* * * *
The hallways of Empire Preparatory were teeming with costumed students on the morning of Halloween. Because of his admission at the comic shop, Steve’s outfit came as little surprise to JJ. His friend was wearing a sensible pair of black shoes, suit pants, a white shirt open to the navel revealing a T-shirt with the superman shield on the chest.
“Faster than a speeding building, able to leap tall bullets in a single…Ouch!” JJ’s teasing was cut short by a swipe to his left ear that knocked the Stetson off his head. “What’d you do that for?” He bent and picked up his hat then rubbed at his ear.
Steve grinned and held up his hands. “Please, Sheriff Woody, don’t arrest me.”
“Huh?” JJ said, putting his hat back on.
Maggie got a shocked look on her face. “Oh, shit, I hadn’t thought about that.”
Steve snickered. “It’s great you both came as characters from Toy Story.”
“We didn’t,” Maggie protested. “I’m an Arcadian shepherdess.” She waved her crook at Steve.
“A what?”
“I know, it’s a bit much, but that’s what they called it in the costume store.”
“ Uh huh.” Steve smirked. “You keep telling yourself that, but everyone’s still gonna think you’re Bo Peep.”
“Oh, God. I’m not going to live this down,” Maggie said, fiddling with one of the many ruffles on her sleeve.
“Anyone who says anything, just hit ’em with your stick,” Steve continued.
“Or I’ll hit ’em with my fists,” JJ said, looking at how much leg Maggie was showing beneath the short skirt that billowed out with layers of petticoats.
“Oh, my hero,” Maggie said, running a hand along JJ’s shoulder.
JJ puffed out his chest. He had to admit there were certain advantages in putting on his western duds. Maggie couldn’t keep her hands off him.
JJ stuck out an elbow. “If’n Miss Bo wouldn’t mind, this ole cowpoke would sure like to take a stroll, an’ maybe we kin find us a hay loft or somethin’ where we kin git better acquainted.”
Maggie giggled. Normally, when he made such suggestions, she’d give him a smack, but he’d realized some time before that he could get away with far more when he was dressed as a cowboy.
As they approached their lockers, JJ spotted Milton in the crowd. Lately the kid seemed to be everywhere. Maggie had warned JJ that Milton was developing a bit of a crush, but JJ didn’t take her seriously. Milton knew JJ was straight.
“Hey, bud!” JJ beckoned to Milton, who reluctantly stepped forward. “Me and Maggie got you something for your birthday. Want to meet me here before lunch?”
“Me?” Milton’s eyes went wide. “Oh, uh, thanks. You shouldn’t have.”
“Of course we should,” Maggie said, giving Milton a hug. “What did you come as?”
“A geek,” he laughed nervously.
JJ saw that Milton was wearing coke bottle glasses and he had a pocket protector in his shirt pocket.
“Cool, bud,” JJ said.
Milton blushed. “Thanks. But how did you know it was my birthday tomorrow?”
“A cowboy has his ways.” JJ smiled and touched the brim of his hat.
Milton’s blush increased. He lowered his book bag to in front of his waist. The guy always seemed to be carrying his stuff around with him; JJ kept meaning to ask why he didn’t put it in his locker.
It’d been easy for JJ to get the date of Milton’s birthday. He’d asked the student volunteer in the front office to look it up. She’d been reluctant at first, but JJ had turned on his southern charm and that, combined with his reassurance that he wanted to get Milton a gift, had her eating out of the palm of his hand. Things had gone a little too far however, because the piece of paper the girl gave him also had her phone number on it. Being a good boyfriend, and valuing his family jewels, JJ had immediately confessed what he’d done to Maggie. She’d smiled, given him a kiss and held her hand out for the piece of paper, which she’d ripped up into tiny pieces.
“Can I take your picture?” Milton asked, getting out his cell phone.
“Uh, I guess.” JJ shrugged.
Steve snickered, but Maggie threatened him with her shepherd’s stick.
JJ put his arm around Maggie’s waist, pulled her in close, and smiled for the camera.
“Thanks,” Milton said once the phone had flashed.
He looked at the image and pressed a button on his phone before slipping it back into his pocket. He then treated JJ to a shy smile before heading off in the direction of the bathroom.
“I bet I wasn’t in the frame,” Maggie said, kissing JJ’s cheek.
“Why?”
She shook her head. “If you remember he didn’t ask for my picture.”
“Oh.”
“Thanks for agreeing. I bet it took a lot of guts for him to ask.”
“He’s probably gone to the bathroom, phone in one hand and dick in the other,” Steve laughed.
JJ rounded on him. “I didn’t think you were a homophobe. I…” Steve got on great with his dads, especially his dad Brock.
“Relax, man.” Steve held up his hands. “I don’t hate gays. I was just…uh, making a joke.”
“It wasn’t funny,” Maggie said.
“Sorry. It’s just he…well, you seem to be spending a lot of time with him lately, buying birthday presents for him and…”
“Jealous?” Maggie asked.
Just then the warning bell rang and everyone moved off to their homerooms. Maggie caught JJ around the neck with her crook. “Time for class, cowboy.”
* * * *
“Oh, God!” Milton gasped. “It’s too much, you shouldn’t have.” He blinked up at JJ through his glasses.
“You’re welcome. Like I said, the comic’s from me and Maggie. To replace the one that got torn up.”
“But, it’s, like, expensive. Thank you, JJ. Thank you.” Milton stroked the comic lovingly through its protective covering.
“Aren’t you going to open it and see if it’s all right?”
“Uh, I don’t want to get it damaged.” He handed the comic back to JJ. “Would you keep it for me until after school?
“I guess, but why don’t you put it in your locker?”
Milton shook his head. “Can’t.”
JJ didn’t understand. “Have you forgotten the combination or something?”
“No, it’s just, I don’t like to keep stuff in there.” He looked down the hallway presumably to where his locker was located.
“Are you still getting hassled by those meatheads? Are they messing with your locker?”
Milton’s head dropped. “Not them.”
The hallway was beginning to empty as students went outside, to the lunchroom, or to their next class.
“What’s going on?” JJ asked.
Milton didn’t say anything.
“Milton?” JJ put a hand on Milton’s shoulder. The guy was trembling. He remembered Calvin talking about his school days, how he’d get stuffed into his locker or his head flushed down the john. But that was Texas and twenty years ago. This was twenty-first century New York. Surely Milton wasn’t being tormented like that?
“Come on, let’s go in here.” JJ put an arm around Milton and led him into an empty classroom. Closing the door, in the most sympathetic voice he could muster, he said, “Talk to me.”
Milton let out a long breath, but refused to meet JJ’s eyes. “Things are a lot better since you…”
Whenever their schedules allowed, JJ had made sure he was around when Milton changed classes. He’d had to face off against a handful of the more stupid members of the basketball team, but things seemed to have settled down okay, or at least JJ thought they had.
Milton’s shaking got worse.
“Hey,” JJ put his arm back around Milton, who shrugged out of the embrace.
“No, don’t. It’s…cruel.”
“Huh?” JJ took a step back, arms at his sides, lo
oking as non-threatening as he could.
Milton looked up at JJ and stared, his continued silence making JJ fidget.
“You’re the most awesome, wonderful, and perfect man I’ve ever met.”
JJ opened his mouth, but couldn’t think of anything to say.
“I wish with all my heart that you were gay and my boyfriend. But then, even if you were gay, you wouldn’t want a dweeb like me.”
“I…”
“Everything about you is perfect. Your blond hair, your eyes, your face, your wide shoulders, your broad chest, your muscles. And your specialness isn’t just skin deep. You care. You’re a good person.” Milton’s voice was starting to crack. “You’re, like, World Series, and I’m not even Little League.”
“No, c’mon now.” JJ shook his head.
“Yes.” Milton sniffed and wiped at his eyes. “I’ve tried to hate Maggie, ’cause she has what I want, but I can’t hate her. She’s a great person, kind, friendly.” Milton’s gaze locked on JJ’s once again. “I bet she doesn’t realize how lucky she is to have someone as…as awesome as you.” He laughed. “I’m making a complete fool of myself. You won’t want to have anything to do with me now.”
Milton turned for the door, but JJ stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder.
“Of course I still want to hang with you. You’re cool.”
Milton shook his head. “No I’m not. I’m a brain, a freak, a…” Milton closed his eyes, no doubt to ward off tears.
JJ pulled Milton into a hug. No, he didn’t have any sexual feelings for the boy—any boy—but Milton was so clearly hurting.
Milton put up a struggle at first, but soon went boneless in JJ’s embrace.
“It isn’t fair.” He kept repeating softly. JJ didn’t need to ask what he meant. “I’ve tried to put myself in your shoes, tried to imagine a girl coming onto me and how that’d make me feel. I couldn’t be what she’d want me to be. So,” Milton took a deep breath, “I understand, and I’m sorry for all of this. I’m not usually such an emotional mess.”
“Nothing to be sorry for. Even though I’m straight, I think I understand a bit of what you’re going through.”
“Thanks.”
They stood in silence for a few moments, the only sounds coming from the schoolyard and the distant noise of the school orchestra practicing.
“Shit,” Milton eventually said.