Chase
It’s a quiet,cool morning in Lake Steamy, and Sully and I spend a good couple of hours digging up Mrs. Abelove’s yard while Max plays in the grass. Mrs. Abelove is our old math teacher, who has since retired. She and her husband don’t quite have the strength to maintain their hillside property like they used to, and the shrubs and forest have been encroaching for a while. Mr. Abelove hired us to do maintenance and reclaim some of the yard, although we’re charging the two of them so little, the work is basically a favor.
Anyone who can make math class tolerable earns my eternal gratitude.
The morning stretches out in an easy rhythm of work, but I still don’t find the chance to broach the topic of Cubby with my friend until right after we tear out the roots of an overgrown shrub. Sully wipes sweat from his dirty face, hands me the water bottle, and then arches a furry eyebrow.
I take the bottle. “Yeah, it’s going good,” I say, knowing what he’s asking about without him needing to say the words.
“Good?”
I grunt. “You know.”
Sully hums under his breath.
I stick my shovel in the dirt. “Nothing wrong at all. We’re having a good time.”
Sully’s hum turns into a questioning grunt.
Frustration rises up, itching between my shoulders. I can hide my feelings from most people, even my family at times, but not from Sully.
“I just got some questions,” I finally say.
“Anal questions?”
I can’t help but grin. “Nah. I think we’re figuring that out fine on our own.”
Sully chuckles. “Cool.”
I look down at the grass, a little embarrassed for myself, but a little proud too. “Yeah.”
“So what is it?”
“We’re casual, and I’m fine with that,” I say, insisting on the last part a bit more forcefully than I need to. “But I’m just not sure what that means.”
“It means you’re not making a commitment.”
“Sure. But then I catch myself wanting to do stuff, and I’m not sure…” I trail off.
Geese honk overhead, flying by as we stand there, my words hanging in the air.
“What stuff?” Sully finally asks.
I kick at the dirt. “I don’t know. The other day I caught some nice trout in the lake and thought, hey, might as well bring this by for Cubby.” I look up at my friend. “Is that allowed?”
Sully smiles, his eyes creasing at the corners. “You want to do something nice for him,” he says simply.
“Guess so. Doesn’t seem very casual, though.”
“Right.” Sully strokes his beard. “Stopping by his place unannounced might not be the best idea. You said he’s trying to focus on his work. But I don’t see what’s wrong with giving him a gift.”
“Is that something you’d do for a guy? When you’re hooking up, I mean.”
Sully chuckles. “Me? Probably not. But I don’t find guys I like as much as you like this one.”
“That’s the problem. I don’t want him to think I like him more than I should.”
Sully doesn’t have to say anything this time. He just raises an eyebrow again, and I hear it all.
