“Oop, look at the time!” Sabrina pointed at her watch-less wrist. “I’m so hungry. Let’s order pizza. Or make some sandwiches, yes.” She sprang to her feet. “I’ll be in the kitchen.”
“I’m not hungry.” Trixie crossed her arms and leaned back.
“Yes, you are. Remember that thing with the, you know—” Sabrina tugged on the sleeve of Trixie’s hoodie. “Come on.”
“Ah that, yes, that’s true.” Trixie sighed and nodded. “I’m coming with you.”
“Charlie, what’s going on?” My voice was barely steady.
“I can explain everything. Sit.” Charlie patted the couch, and I sank into the soft pillows. What the hell was happening?
Chapter Three
Charlie
Fucking hell, I should have told him everything back at Randy’s. Now I was looking into the eyes of a man who’d been hurt, and I hated that I caused it by lying to him. He wasn’t angry. No, his fallen expression was one of disappointment, and that was worse.
“Where did you get the picture? Why do you even have it? This is me.” Trent pointed to himself as an eleven-year-old, standing with a group of six kids.
“And this is me.” I tapped the image of myself in overalls and pigtails.
“No, that’s my best friend—” He swallowed hard and lifted his gaze to mine. “My bestie,Charlie.”
I nodded. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you who I was right away when I recognized you at the diner. It was a mistake and—”
“You’re my Charlie?” His whisper was quiet.
“Yeah. I’m just living as my true self now.”Would he understand?
Tears welled in his eyes, and I panicked.
“I’m so sorry, Trent, please let me explain.” Air whooshed out of me as he crushed me to his chest. Geez, the dude could collapse my lungs if he squeezed harder. I patted his back and breathed through my nose. His citrusy cologne and the warmth of his body invoked memories of us sitting on his porch and eating oranges, then riding bikes to the park with our hands sticking to the handlebars.
The wheeze that came out of me was involuntary and Trent let go of me, holding me at an arm’s length.
“I missed you. For over a decade, I wondered what happened to you. One day you told me your dad got a better job in the city and the next thing you were gone.” He spoke fast and slid his hands from my shoulders to my sweaty palms.
“I didn’t want to leave, but a fresh start for my family and no one knowing us gave me an opportunity to come out to them. In a way, that move was a blessing in disguise. They were very supportive and helped me get the medical attention I needed to live as me.” I squeezed his hands.
“As a man.” He searched my face as if uncertain if it was really me.
“Well, yes.” My stomach was in my throat. I had surrounded myself with friends who understood me, and it had been a while since I had to explain my transition to someone I cared about.
“Okay. Are you happy?” Trent was still processing, but his shoulders relaxed, and his frown smoothed out.
“With my body? Yes.”
He nodded. “I knew your parents were good people.” He picked up the frame and traced the photograph with a finger. “Those are great memories. And after tonight, I have more of those with you.” The smile that reached his teary eyes broke me in the best way.
“Oh, shut up.” The bastard was gonna make me cry. “Are you staying?”
“Well, Trixie promised me a beer, so yeah.” He stood up and pulled me into a hug again. His big, warm body was like a blanket I could pull around me to feel everything would be okay.
By the time we entered the kitchen, several friends had already arrived with snacks.
“I brought my dad’s empanadas.” Felix lifted a bag packed with tupperware and set it aside to fix the bun on his head. He’d come with his girlfriend and boyfriend—all three of them a part of our friends’ group for years.
“I ordered pizza, so these can be for me.” Sabrina took the bag from him, but Trixie snatched it away.
