The Art of the Phallus
A museum all about the penis throughout history
There’s a location and directions and a couple teasing pictures of dicks. “Yep, I’m convinced.”
Ruby laughs. “Right?! Sounds fun.”
Oscar returns, and I hand him the paper. “Ruby found our next outing,” I tell him.
He reads it with a growing grin. “Perfect. We can stop by a concierge booth later.”
“I already did,” Ruby says, grinning. “On my way here. I grabbed three tickets.”
I pull him down as I lie back again. He snuggles alongside my body, half of him lying on me. “Thanks. So, what brings you here so early? Not complaining at all, but I thought you were spending some time in the tech hut to catch up on emails and prep for school.”
Ruby sighs, and it doesn’t feel happy. In fact, it feels like he sags a little, which is impressive since we’re lying down. Oscar rests his hand on Ruby’s side, and I can feel Oscar snuggling in behind him.
“I don’t think my transfer is going to go through in time for the start of school,” he says.
“I’m sorry,” I say.
He shrugs. “It’s my own fault. I didn’t even begin the process until three days before I came to Kala. It’s not like I’m showing a lot of responsibility and maturity. Besides, this is my second transfer in two years.”
“Why so many?” I ask.
“Well, the first school is where I met the man I was in an abusive relationship with for most of the school year. Needless to say, I didn’t have any good feelings about going back, so I transferred. I only went an hour away, though, and I spent the entirety of last year looking over my shoulder, waiting for him to pop out. My grades and my mental health suffered a lot.” He pauses. “In fact, I’m also slacking on talking to a therapist, and I promised my brother I’d reach out to mine again this summer.”
I kiss his forehead. “I’m sorry,” I repeat. “I hate that for you.”
He sighs. “Yeah. So I sent an email to admissions and asked to unenroll for the year. I don’t think I can go through another year of looking over my shoulder every time I leave my dorm room.”
“That sounds exhausting,” Oscar says. “Did you press charges?”
“I… No, but my understanding is that he’s been taken care of. I don’t know what that means, but I think the ambiguity of it is why I still feel like he can simply show up again.”
“What’s your plan for next year? Where’s home?”
“My parents live in Tennessee, but I’ll probably stay with Lix and Noah in L.A. Maybe enroll in one of the colleges in L.A. or find an online program that doesn’t adhere to traditional start/end schedules like in-person courses do. The problem is, as you know, I don’t really know what I want to do, so I’m not incredibly upset about being out of school for the semester. My fear is that I’ll never go back and finish.”
I nearly forget to breathe when he says he’ll be moving to L.A. That’s only six hours from me. Six! That’s not an awful distance at all. And while I’m sad about this new obstacle inRuby’s life, with him being out of school or taking online courses, that means there’s the possibility that he can come to visit us often.
“You don’thave togo to college,” Oscar says. “You know that, right?”
“Yes,” Ruby says, and I feel his smile on my skin. “I guess part of me was hoping that by exploring the different courses, I might find something I want to do for the next forty-to-fifty years.”
“There are a ton of courses you can participate in without being enrolled at the school offering them,” I tell him. “I was going to offer to text you a few resources, but obviously, I can’t do that right now.”
He laughs. “That’s okay. I like that idea. Maybe we can do that in a couple weeks.”
Now seems like a good enough opening. “Speaking of a couple weeks from now… Ruby, I’d really like to keep seeing you when we leave Kala at the end of the summer.”
Ruby picks his head up, a huge smile on his face. “Yeah?”
“Definitely. L.A. is only six hours away, so that’s definitely a doable distance. I know it might still be a little frustrating and challenging being long distance, but I feel strongly that I’ve been waiting for you for a very long time. I don’t want this to end with the summer.”
Ruby sighs. “Neither do I.” His eyes flicker to Oscar’s, which we both interpret as an opening for my husband.
“How do you feel about seeing both of us?” Oscar asks.
