The cartoon squad all nodded.
William continued. “It took courage to share that story. To show our appreciation—or should I say solidarity—we will each remove our shirts now.”
Matt watched this mini striptease, which at times was almost comical as the guys struggled to keep their masks in place. He appraised each guy’s chest. Pirate’s was the best: he had a lean build with sculpted pecs and stunning washboard abs. Lion was a bulkier kind of beautiful, with a boxer’s body. Mouse and Princess were slim and boyish, their pecs undefined, their nipples small. Matt avoided looking at Clown. And he had already seen William’s chest, which was the only one that could be described as hairy.
The game resumed.
Matt chose “bare” twice in a row (in response to Princess and Lion) just to avoid another probing question. He set his shoes to the side, one at a time.
Clown asked him “Truth or Bare?”
Matt chose ‘truth’, and was asked what, if anything, he’d ever done with a girl?
“I went out with a couple of girls in high school—briefly,” Matt said. “You know, trying to be straight. I took one to Prom. Physically, though, the most I ever did was kissing closed mouth.”
Eventually, it was Matt’s turn to ask William “Truth or Bare?”
William chose “truth.”
“How do you manage to survive at MCU being so effeminate?” Matt asked.
The cartoon squad lost their composure and laughed.
William waited for the room to quiet down. “I survive, dahling, because I am the court jester, the token queer they tolerate so that they can proclaim that they have a gay ‘friend.’ And even as the token, I must be a sanitized, ‘G-rated’ eunuch.”
Until that moment Matt had been a little jealous that William got to be out at MCU. Now he realized how lonely the role must be: considered everyone’s friend but having no friends. He remembered how, a few minutes earlier, William and the cartoon squad had paid him respect by removing their shirts. He returned the gesture, taking off one sock and holding it up for all to see.
The rest of the cartoon squad similarly removed articles of clothing. Clown caught Matt’s attention despite Matt’s coulrophobia. Clown had already been down to just his shorts and those blue high tops, having doffed his shirt earlier.
Matt expected Clown to remove one of his shoes. Instead, the guy chose to shed his shorts—and, SURPRISE, he was apparently going commando!
Clown sat naked with only his mask on his face and his high tops on his feet!
Matt felt a budding affinity for this weird tribe, his tribe if they would have him. He had assumed the game’s nudity was sexual in nature—and given they were all gay, that had to be a factor. Now he realized another, subtler, factor: clothes made it easier to lie—to oneself and to others. Clothes masked the imperfections of nature, made people look taller or younger or slimmer. There was truth in nakedness. Wasn’t it Jesus who said the truth would set you free?
Round two began with Matt’s still wearing one sock, jeans, and underwear. He had to choose “bare” for Mouse’s question since he had chosen “truth” twice in a row. He removed his remaining sock, tossed it onto the growing pile of his discarded clothing. He noticed now, bare feet against the carpet, how thick and plush it was.
How could these guys afford a room like this when his dad, an officer in the Air Force, could not?
Next it was Pirate’s turn. There was no way Matt was going to give that guy another shot at a soul-searing question, so he chose “bare” and removed his jeans.
Eventually it was Clown’s turn. Matt was down to his boxer briefs. Clown asked him “Truth or Bare?”
Matt chose “truth,” avoiding eye contact.
“Why do you have that Dallas Cheerleaders poster in your room?” Clown asked.
Matt had asked himself the same question a day earlier. Why did he have that poster? Whatever baby step the poster had represented on his journey out of the closet was behind him and seemed silly now. “Actually, I threw that away yesterday,” Matt said.
Clown looked at William. “I think I’ve heard enough. I’m ready to vote.”
Shit! Matt felt panicky. Had he said something wrong? He remembered that Clown’s earlier question had been about Matt’s history with girls. Now this question about the poster. Did Clown think he was lying about being gay?
That confirmed it: he HATED clowns!
William held up a hand. “I think Clown is right. We’ve heard enough to be able to vote on Matthew’s candidacy. Does anyone object to voting now?”
Matt wanted to object. He wanted the game to continue so he could convince them of his worthiness.
