He grins as he takes his phone from one of our companions, showing me that they recorded the interaction for him. My smile widens and I nod approvingly. “You’re so much better at this than me,” I laugh, happy one of us thought to record this adventure.
Trent tosses his arm over my shoulders, leading us away from the tequila cart and looking over his shoulder at the rest of our group. “Come on, let’s go find some trouble to get into. Thisguy’s never been to a college party, and he’s in desperate need of some normal human experiences.”
I blush to the root of my hair, but when our group cheers, I decide that whatever we do, as long as I’m with Trent, I’ll enjoy myself, no matter how embarrassing my lack of experience is. He’s going to make sure I get everything I need, and realizing that helps loosen the knot of stress that’s been bothering me all day.
Yeah, Trent’ll take care of me.
Chapter 29
Magnus
The groupthat Trent organized this trip with is full of fun and interesting people. Two of them were already fans, but after an afternoon playing in the pool with several groups the travel agency organized this for, we’ve made an impression on about half of the people here. Fortunately, the agency understands the safety issues inherent with traveling as queer people, and all the groups at the pool party were full of people safe for the LGBTQ+ community.
Surprisingly, I recognized more than a few people in other groups. According to Trent, the agency he used came from a recommendation from some of his classmates and is popular among the university students for booking destination spring break vacations. I like being surrounded by familiar faces, even if I don’t know them personally.
After grabbing a couple of cocktails from the tiki hut, I weave through the crowd of spring breakers to get back to Trent, who I find in light conversation with another familiar face, although I’ve forgotten his name again. I hand Trent his cocktail and sit with him, smiling up at the guy who’s standing to the side of the lounge chair Trent and I are sharing. “Hey, what’s up?” I greet him, wracking my brain for his name.
He glances at me and performs a fake smile in greeting. “Hey, Magnus. You having fun?”
I sip my cocktail, glancing at Trent for help. “I am. It’s my first event like this. Trent did a great job setting up our itinerary. I didn’t know we’d be around a bunch of students from our own university, but it’s pleasant to be in the company of familiar people.”
Trent nudges me. “Luis is a late joiner for our group. He got in late this morning and was bussed over here just in time for the pool party.”
Ah, right. Luis Zapato. I remember now. “Did you have flight issues, too?” I ask him curiously.
“Nah, I just couldn’t get away until today. You know how it is with big projects.” He looks around, clearly ready to move on now that I’ve arrived, and up-nods someone he sees. “You two have fun. I’m gonna make the rounds. See ya.”
“Bye, Luis,” I tell him.
He huffs with less than amused laughter. “Thanks for not calling me Mr. Zapato this time.”
I shrug unapologetically. “When in professor mode, I use a more formal form of address. I’m in student mode now, so I’ll be more familiar.” If I can remember a person’s name, but I don’t tell him that.
Luis leaves us, and I turn to Trent, who’s watching him leave with a tense expression. “Why do you look upset by him leaving?”
“I’m not,” he assures me, looking away from Luis and turning his attention back to me. He wraps an arm around my shoulders and pulls me in for a nearly naked cuddle. We’re required to keep our swimwear on while here, but we’re both wearing speedos that leave about as much to the imagination as our videos do.
Considering this morning’s mostly naked cuddle, I’m not going to give it much thought. I get to snuggle Trent, and that’s been one of my favorite things since he started giving me hugs.
We’re reclined, so I take a big sip of my drink and hand it to Trent, who puts it on the table beside him. “Ok, now tell me why you’re feeling negative about Luis,” I order him quietly enough to keep our conversation private.
“It’s stupid, honestly. He thinks you’re an asshole, and it bothers me even though we’ve always been friendly,” he gripes, tensing where we’re touching.
I lift my hand and tip it back and forth in front of us. “He might have a valid reason for that opinion. I have been known to break out the asshole behavior when the need arises.”
Trent chuckles and kisses the top of my head. “Sure, but you’re only an asshole to people who deserve it. You’ve never been one to Luis.”
“Maybe Luis deserved it. But honestly, I keep forgetting his name. We’ve had multiple classes together and done some charity projects together, and for some reason his name keeps slipping away. If you hadn’t said something, I would have been pretending I remembered until he left. It’s an asshole thing to admit, but he’s never made enough of an impression to stick.” The confession really is a horrible thing to say, but if I can’t be my true self with Trent, I’m not sure there will ever be a person I can be real with.
“I get it. He’s a normal guy, the kind that passes through your life and is forgotten. I understand, and I still don’t like his opinion of you.”
I poke him just above his belly button. “It doesn’t matter what he thinks. The only people whose opinions matter are people whose names I can remember, and sometimes they only matter in as much as it gives me access to their money, so, yeah. The guy might be right about me.”
My poke above his belly button turns into a light exploration of his shallow innie, and I watch with fascination as his abdominals flex and relax every time I dip my finger into his navel. For several long seconds, I explore his reactions, until I push a little too hard and his throaty growl pulls me out of my study.
“Magnus,” he warns me, catching my hand.
I lift my head off his chest to look at his face. “Did I hurt you?”
