I heard David mumbling about knowing this was a bad idea as he picked up all the shopping bags off the floor.
Isaac asked Tiago to fix us all with coffee and told me to take a seat on the other side of his desk. Was I going to get the best friend pep talk? I smiled to myself at the thought.
“So, Joel, I’m glad to finally meet you,” Isaac said, leaning forward, placing his elbows on the desk, and resting his head on his hands.
“You know about me?” I asked. I don’t know why I was surprised that he did. After all, he and David were close, but I didn’t think I would come up in conversation since they hadn’t met until long after I’d been gone.
I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed his eyes earlier; maybe it was because they hadn’t been as focused on me like they were right now. They were a piercing blue-green and stared at me as if they were trying to figure me out.
“He didn’t tell me about you until he accidentally mentioned you in his sleep one day.”
What the actual fuck. Did they sleep together?
My face must have shown my shock because Isaac was quick to say they slept together only a couple of times after a night out when Isaac lived in a smaller apartment with only one bed and no sofa. Nothing had happened between them. Something in his demeanor made me believe what he said.
“I prefer tall, blond, brown-eyed, and sexy assholes who break promises.”
The way he said it I could tell he was talking about someone specific. Isaac was staring at a glass decoration he had on his desk. It had an inscription, but I couldn’t read it from where I was sitting.
“Do you wanna talk about it?” I asked, offering a friendly ear.
“No, it’s not worth the time, Joel.” He paused and then repeated my name like he remembered something, but he changed the subject. “Looks like Tiago gave up on our coffee. He’s so fired.”
“I thought he was a volunteer.”
“He is, well, most of the time, anyway,” he chuckled, and then sat back putting on a more serious expression. “I feel it’s my duty to warn you not to hurt David.”
I was expecting him to follow up on his threat with more detail, but all he did was stare at me with his piercing blue-green eyes.
“Um is that it?” I asked, trying to stifle my laugh.
“That’s it,” he said with a shrug.
Tiago came back, without the coffee, just in time to welcome a group of teenage boys and a girl. They high-fived him, and the girl gave him a quick hug before they all bumped Isaac’s fist and then walked through the door.
“That’s David’s class,” he explained.
“They look like good kids.”
“They haven’t got an easy life, but we hope to make it a little better for them and give them the skills they need to secure a better future.”
We walked through the door behind the group to start the tour. Isaac smiled wide as he talked about the center and the kids. Some of them came to the center because they were living in foster care, didn’t have families, or struggled at school and needed additional support to be able to stay in class until they could finish high school and get a job.
When Isaac told me about the homeless kids the center helps because their parents kicked them out for being LGBT, there was sadness in his voice. I knew the reason since David had told me a little about Isaac’s story of being kicked out by his own parents for being gay. The unfairness of it all broke my heart, and I would forever be grateful to my parents for having made it so easy for me to be who I am.
I also had a feeling that as far as Isaac was concerned, any kid that came to him because they were homeless would receive help, whether they were LGBT or not. No one would get turned down.
“We work with other charities when we can’t help. Our funds are very limited since we rely mostly on donations and the support of volunteers,” Isaac explained as we walked up the stairs that led to another floor. “I want to expand the center to be able to offer emergency accommodation, but it’s been a challenge not just from a financial aspect but also the legal side of things. Bureaucracy has a way to forget we’re talking about real people here. Kids who will spend the night outside in the cold with no food and vulnerable to all kinds of predators.” I could hear the frustration in his voice.
“Do you help mainly young LGBT people?” I asked with interest.
“We don’t close the door on anyone, whatever their age, gender, sexuality, or background. If they are in need, we will try to help. However, the facilities we have are targeted mainly with helping teenagers and young adults. This is a safe place for them, and some have suffered abuse at the hands of adults. When an adult reaches out, we give them all the information they need and signpost them to other charities that can help.”
I was in awe of this man and the good work he was trying to do. I wondered how many kids now had jobs and a roof over their heads because of the help Isaac offered. How many now had people they could talk to about the stuff going on in their lives? I was also immensely proud of David for being part of this despite his own story.
“My friend is arriving in a few days. He does a lot of work at a youth center and would probably like to see what you do here. Would it be okay if I bring him here to see you?” I knew Max would be interested in talking to Isaac about the center since he volunteered as a nurse at an LGBT center in Greenwich Village.
“Of course, I’d be happy to meet your friend. Shall we see what David and the kids are up to in the kitchen?”
