“I’m the breadwinner.”
“Do you really even know what will happen if you two get back together?”
“If he’s even willing to do that. I broke his heart, K. Not only that, he doesn’t deserve to have to live in my shadow.”
Kathy stepped up to me, grabbing my face in her delicate hands and forcing me to look at her. “Then don’t make him. Get your man back, Macio, and both of you walk out into the light. Let society be damned. Take the blows, stand up to the challenge, and make the change.”
Fear struck my heart at the thought of what she was telling me to do. I could imagine my brother and father’s disapproval, the ridicule from the public. Not to mention the backlash from the promotion. Could an openly gay MMA fighter even be marketable? I pulled away from her and turned, storming off to the locker room.
“You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about, Kathy. Go home,” I growled. I took my time in the locker room, showering and getting dressed. The whole time I was in there, I was praying that Kathy had left. When I finally walked out, I was all alone in the gym again. I locked up and went home to my empty house, save for Caesar, who came running up to me, jumping on my chest.
“Hey big boy!” I greeted as he licked my face and I rubbed his ears. We did our ritual and after I gave him a doggy treat, he ran off to his special place under the stairs to eat it. I tossed my gym bag into the corner of the room that also held my two bags of luggage. I had a championship fight to go to in New York in a week, which meant I needed to get there for all the pomp and circumstance beforehand. That consisted of conferences, a weigh-in, and promos. All the shit I hated. I went to my fridge for a cold beer. After a few swigs, I looked over my mail and stopped at a magazine featuring one of Aiden’s articles.
“Why are you torturing yourself?” I mumbled as I turned to the page where he was featured, only to see his photo inset on the page. God, he was beautiful and everything I’d ever wanted. My chest felt tight and that constriction traveled up my throat as I fought back the tears. I’d shed plenty since we parted ways. The doorbell ringing gave me a much needed distraction. “Coming,” I called out, heading towards the door. I checked the peephole, only to see Rupert on the other side. “Shit… what the fuck does he want?”
I opened the door, giving him a slight smile. “What can I do for you this time of night?”
“I just came to give you some company, kid. I’m here under a friend’s capacity,” Rupert said. He was holding two bottles of the good shit, and that was just what I needed to drown my sorrows, at least for a night.
I waved him in. “Make yourself at home.”
“Thanks.” He entered and I closed the door.
He was dressed pretty casual in a pullover and jeans, which was rare for Rupert. God knows he loved his suits. He walked into my living room and I followed. “I’ll get us some glasses,” I offered after Rupert took a seat and turned on my seventy-five-inch screen TV.
“Cool,” Rupert said, grinning.
I walked into my kitchen, grabbing two wine glasses and a corkscrew, then returned to the living room, taking a seat beside Rupert. “Here.” I handed him the corkscrew, and he popped open the wine and started pouring. “So, how’s the wife?”
He shrugged. “Having a good time spending my money, as all women do.”
I smirked. “Shit, I know a few twinks who can put most women to shame when it comes to shopping,” I said.
Rupert laughed. “Oh, I bet.” He held his glass up. “What should we toast to?”
I had to think about that, because I didn’t have shit to celebrate at the moment. “How about we toast to finding our way,” I suggested.
Rupert smiled. “I’ll drink to that.”
We clicked our glasses and started drinking.
Two hours later, and two bottles empty, we were both good and drunk and talking about all kinds of shit. I hadn’t laughed that hard in so long, it felt good to just let it all go and live again, even if it was temporary.
I chuckled at something Rupert said and shook my head. “Hey, buddy, no one told you to dress up like a hotdog that year.”
“Your dog thought I was one of his stuffed toys!”
We both burst into drunken laughter as the memory came back to us of Caesar, in his early puppy days, gnawing on Rupert’s hotdog costume at my Halloween party a few years ago. Rotty’s had death grip bites and my pup made that hotdog, and the man inside, his for the night. When I’d finally gotten Caesar to let go, there was a big hole in Rupert’s costume that left his ass exposed. We all had a good time laughing at the whole incident that night.
“That was great,” I said, smiling as I thought back fondly.
“It really was,” Rupert agreed. “It’s nice to see you smiling and laughing again, Macio.”
I looked at him. “Yeah, it feels nice.”
He put his hand on my knee. “I just want you to be happy. I care about you a great deal.”
“I know.”
