Rowdy returned to the classroom with the person I assumed was the counselor, and Rowdy sent me a furtive look. I smiled in return. His brow was still quizzical as he got things started, going around the room and having everyone say how their day went.
When Rowdy got to us, Jaxon grunted, “Pass.”
I wondered how Rowdy would handle that—it’d be easy to get into a power struggle with a teenager—but Rowdy took it in stride, skipping over him, and me, to move on to the next person. Message received: This was Rowdy’s domain, and I was a silent observer.
The one thing I noted as the class progressed was that Jaxon seemed to grow more and more agitated. While there was a clear schedule that they followed, Rowdy and the counselor—a cool older lady named Mrs. Ceballos—did a great job of going with the flow, letting the conversation go where the kids needed it to. Today’s subject,Dating In Your Teens, felt a little on the nose.
When Mrs. Ceballos emphasized it was okay to take your time and get to know the person better, I exchanged a quick glance with Rowdy, who went beet red. Huh. Another tell.
I smiled to myself, imagining the ways in which I’d woo him.
When I checked on Jaxon, though, he was cringing, almost as if he wanted to hide under his desk. He was drumming on the desktop, clenching and unclenching his massive hands, obviously uncomfortable.
I bet everyone assumed he was a good ten years older than he was. While this conversation seemed age appropriate, I remembered Rowdy saying something about adults hitting on him. As I considered the implications of that, I noticed Jaxon wore what appeared to be a woven bracelet made with various shades of blue and orange around his large wrist.
That reminded me that this group was LGBTQ+ friendly. Checking out the other students, I saw a variety of queer flag colors represented in their clothing, jewelry, and nail polish. I didn’t recognize the colors that Jaxon was wearing, so I wasn’t sure if they meant anything or if those were just his favorite colors.
Surreptitiously, I pulled out my phone and did a quick image search for “LGBTQ+ flag blue and orange.” The first picture that came up was the aromantic-asexual flag.
I’d been familiar with the purple, black, and gray colors of the asexual flag, but I hadn’t realized there was a specific aro-ace flag. I hadn’t wanted to assume, but if I was reading the situation correctly, his discomfort with the discussion of the day actually made a lot of sense.
After a few more minutes, Rowdy and Mrs. Ceballos called a break, encouraging the kids to grab snacks and talk to the person next to them. Neither I nor Jaxon got up, so I took the opportunity and pointed to his bracelet.
“That’s really nice. Do those colors mean anything?” I asked, not wanting to assume—and, maybe, giving him an out if he didn’t want to share.
“Uh.” He glanced over at me, then down at his wrist. “They mean aro-ace.”
“Oh, cool.” I chewed at my bottom lip, then went in. “I kind of know what that means, but do you mind telling me what it means for you?”
Rowdy walked up to us at that exact moment. “Hey, looky here. Two of my favorite guys. What’re y’all talking about?”
Jaxon looked between the two of us, then froze. I smiled and gave him the go-ahead gesture.
“I was just telling Kess about my bracelet.”
17
ROWDY
I checkedout the bracelet and the lightbulb in my head finally sputtered on.
“Is that new?”
Jaxon covered it with his large hand, twisting it around his wrist. “Yeah. Kinda.”
“Did you make it yourself?”
He nodded, shy.
“You did a great job with it.” I hesitated. I didn’t want to push, but I did want to let him know I understood. “Are those the aro-ace colors?”
He looked over at Kess, for some reason, who encouraged him with a smile.
“Yes.”
I took the desk from the next row and spun it around, sitting as the kids went to the front of the class for Kool-Aid and cookies. “Has today’s discussion made you uncomfortable?”
He seemed to fold in on himself.
