“Ignore the conceited a-hole to your left,” Casey continued. “He’s right, though. You have to do this when you’re ready, but it’s been nice that you’ve been able to see what it’s like to be out and proud around other gay guys. I told you they had a great LGBTQ+ community in Parlaisa!”
“Yeah, you weren’t playing. And it’s been great getting to dance and drink and…have some fun,” I said, thinking about the hookups I’d enjoyed since we arrived.
“Speaking of which,” Steve said, “I feel like I’ve been missing out on half of you guys’ lives with all the swiping you’ve been doing since we got here. I should change my Tinder setting so I can troll the two of you.”
“As if our future vet who volunteers at the animal shelter every weekend would even reply to you,” Casey said. “And let’s not even get into the famous bj’s.”
“That is not on my profile,” I insisted.
“Really? Did you review my changes?” I worried for an instant before he shouted, “Kidding, kidding! I would never make my man look so desperate…on Tinder. Grindr, however, is another story.”
“Whatever,” I said. “As if Steve would even be looking for my profile. We both know he’d be fishing for some nudes from you.”
Steve burst into a laugh, and Casey followed.
“Steve,” Casey added. He grabbed the Lasso of Truth affixed to a side belt-loop in his shorts and eyed him suspiciously. “You can just ask. This is a safe space.”
“Don’t threaten me with a Lasso of Truth unless you’re ready to be tied up in it,” Steve replied.
“Then consider yourself threatened,” Casey teased.
“But seriously,” Steve said, turning back to me. “Having known you since eighth grade, I can honestly say I feel like I’m actually seeing you totally relaxed and having fun for the first time.”
“It has been nice,” I admitted. “I love getting to go out and not feel like I have to hide who I am. And I want to be able to do that back home in Fever Falls too. I was kind of wishing I could have just blurted it out on the phone to Nance and Jace, but I’m gonna tell them as soon as I get back home. I don’t like keeping it from them, and after the fun I had freshman year, I feel like I’m one hundred percent sure of where my interests lie.”
“I don’t really know how there was any confusion when you were hanging out with a stud like me all these years,” Steve went on, eliciting another laugh from me.
“Okay, okay,” I said. “I think you’ve managed to inflate your ego enough on this trip, bruh.”
“Hi, my name’s Keegan Kruse,” Steve came back with, imitating me. “I say things like, ‘Dude. Bruh. I’m uncomfortable, so let me adjust my cap backward, since even in cosplay I have to have a cap to play with, dude, bruh.’” He shifted an imaginary cap on his head, but even though he was picking on me, with the smile on his face, it was hard to do anything other than enjoy his performance.
“Dude, bruh. Dude, bruh,” Casey repeated.
“Bruh, bruh.” As they continued assaulting me with their imitations, I pulled the bill of my cap to the front and pushed it down to hide my face.
But God, I loved these guys.
We continued waiting with the crowd for the finale to the parade, the King’s speech in the Town Square of Parlaisa’s capital, Praeve. We’d discovered in our time in Parlaisa, visiting various historical sites and learning about their Annual Parlaisa Summer Festival, that this was one of the most highly anticipated events for the citizens of the nation. While we waited, Steve got to texting some women we’d met—native Parlaisans—who said they’d meet up with us here.
“There they are!” Steve finally announced when he spotted two women dressed in wigs and schoolgirl costumes. We’d run into Kendra and Lana while we were lost on the main river walk. Steve, having never met a stranger—a hot female stranger—effortlessly went up to ask for help finding the national museum, and we’d hung out with them a few times since. Steve had hooked up with Kendra on a night when Casey and I had been busy out with our own tricks for the evening.
“What are you guys supposed to be?” I asked as I looked them over.
Kendra wore a blonde wig, white-and-blue blouse, and blue skirt, while Lana wore a green wig, white blouse, and black skirt.
“I’m Sailor Moon,” Kendra said, and Lana added, “And I’m Sailor Pluto.”
“What is that? A comic or something?” Steve asked.
They glanced at one another, laughing.
“You don’t know who Sailor Moon is? Really?” Lana asked.
“No joke.”
“It’s an anime cartoon and kind of a big deal,” Kendra said, looking him up and down. “What are you supposed to be? A confused American?”
“Don’t hate on my half-assed Indiana Jones outfit,” he said.
