I rest my head on his chest as we move in a slow circle. Trevor’s hand falls to the small of my back, holding me close as the song chants about heaven being a place on earth.
It’s not hard to believe.
What did Trevor say about peace? That it’s a roar. A battle cry. It’s everything we fight for.
If that’s heaven, I think I could find it here.
The song ends, transitioning into another I’m not familiar with. “We’ll have to flip the cassette eventually to listen to side B,” I note.
Trevor chuckles, squeezing me tighter. “Want to get into your cake?”
“An hour early? Can we do that?”
“We can do whatever you want, Red.”
I hum. “One more dance first.”
Trevor presses a kiss to my head. We sway together for another song. And another. At one point, I spot Bev peeking around the end of the stack. But for once she doesn’t say a word, just leaves us be.
When we finally stop to cut into the cake, the sun has set fully. We sit on the floor, the cardboard box between us, a fork in each of our hands. We don’t light a candle, but I’m glad for it. I know what my wishes are.
“Trevor…” I finally say, licking the vanilla icing off my fork before setting it aside. “This is the nicest birthday I’ve ever had. Thank you.”
Trevor smiles at me in that way he does, soft and honest and sweet. “To another year.”
“Another year,” I repeat.
We do flip the cassette tape over to hear the rest of the songs, my arms around Trevor and his around me as we dance the last hours of the night away. And if a tear rolls down my cheek before the clock strikes midnight?
Well, I don’t think anyone could blame me for crying on such a perfect birthday.
Chapter 26
Trevor
I double-check the tripod placement before making a final visual sweep of my room. It’s as neat as it’s going to get.
The camera will only catch a portion of my bed and wall, but this is the first time I’ll be recording myself in full, instead of only my dick. I want everything to be perfect.
My phone chimes. Isaac is here.
I let him into the otherwise-empty apartment. Being midday, my uncle is below in the tattoo shop and will be for hours still.
“Hey,” Isaac says softly, his cheeks dusted pink.
I take his jacket, hanging it by the door. “You ready for this?”
He lets out a quiet laugh. “Areyou? I have the easy job. You’re the one who’s actually going to be…doing stuff.”
“I’m ready,” I tell him, feeling it.
I wait until Isaac has followed me into my bedroom to close the door and lock it, just in case.
“Chair in the corner,” I let him know. “And could you keep an eye on the shot? Signal me if I go out of frame?”
He nods. “What are, um… What are you doing for this one?”
My lips twitch. “Figured I’d keep it simple. Let the focus be me. And my dick, of course.”
