“Yeah. Kit was tiny when I first got hired. I worked my way up from busboy to cook to assistant manager, and then I bought the place about four years ago. My boss was going to shut it down when he retired, but I couldn’t let that happen.”
“You must really love it.”
“I do. But also, it needed to stay open for our customers. A lot of them are senior citizens who live alone, and they’d be pretty isolated without the diner. There’s really no place else to go in our neighborhood, so they come in for a chance to socialize, as much as they do for a meal.”
“I wish more business owners were as caring as you are. Kit told me about the free holiday feasts you make for your customers and the community. That’s so awesome.”
“I like being able to give back.” But I didn’t like talking about myself, so I picked up the carton of eggs and changed the subject. “Should I make cheese omelets for all of us?”
“Yes, please! I was going to suggest scrambled eggs, but that’s way better.”
I turned my attention to making the omelets, and Vee toasted some English muffins, sliced a loaf of banana bread, and took a big bowl of mixed berries from the fridge. Then Yolanda and JoJo came in and helped us bring everything out to the patio.
While we ate, JoJo mentioned Kit and Devon’s European honeymoon, and the conversation turned to traveling. I didn’t have anything to contribute, since I’d never been anywhere. But I enjoyed listening to Vee’s funny stories about the many places he’d been, and the time passed quickly.
After lingering over coffee, I told them I should probably get going, because I had a long drive ahead of me. The three of them walked me to the door, and Vee asked me to wait a minute and ran upstairs.
A minute later, he returned with a very full canvas tote bag, printed with the name of the health center where he volunteered. “Here’s a bunch of stuff I had left over from a community outreach event last week,” he said, as he handed me the bag. “Hopefully you’ll find some of it useful. The rest is just for fun.”
I thanked him, and he crushed me in a hug as he exclaimed, “Good luck, Manny! And again, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call me.” He meant well, but there was no way on Earth I was going to call one of my son’s friends with sex questions.
Once I was back in my truck, curiosity got the better of me, so I emptied the tote bag’s contents onto the passenger seat. There was a huge amount of stuff, including several pamphlets, dozens of condoms and lube packets, stickers, buttons, a T-shirt, a pair of smiling plush eggplant toys, and a little Pride flag. I grinned and muttered, “It’s like, welcome to bisexuality. Here’s your starter kit.”
The T-shirt featured an extremely happy cartoon condom marching along beneath the slogan, “Don’t be silly, wrap your willy.” Were there people bold enough to wear something like that in public?
I picked up a pamphlet entitled, “A beginner’s guide to anal sex: the truth, the HOLE truth, and nothing BUTT the truth.”The cover was decorated with a random pattern of emojis, including peaches, eggplants, water droplets, and some I didn’t even recognize. It looked like it had been designed for someone much younger than me… or maybe I was just hopelessly behind the times.
I opened the pamphlet and scanned the subject headings. Obviously, I understood the basics. This reminded me I had a lot to learn though, especially because all my bi fantasies involved bottoming.
After I read the paragraph on douching, I returned the pamphlet to the pile with a sigh. It would have been one thing if I was trying to figure all of this out in my teens or twenties. Back then, my partner and I would have been equally clumsy and inexperienced. But a man as handsome and smooth as Tory had probably been with dozens of men. Maybe hundreds. If I tried to have sex with him, I’d only embarrass myself.
Then again, if I chickened out now, when was I ever going to make my fantasies a reality?
The answer to that was probably never.
I knew I was hesitating because I was scared. I wasn’t someone who took chances, acted spontaneously, or sought out new experiences. Just the opposite. I rarely strayed outside of my comfort zone, but part of me wanted more.
For once, I wanted to live a little.
And I really wanted to go out with Tory. He was gorgeous and interesting, and if I didn’t give this a shot, I’d regret it for the rest of my life.
But still, fear made me try to stall. I told myself I had to make sure I wasn’t needed at work before I did anything.
I knew they wouldn’t need me, though… and I was struggling with that. Last year, after my son-in-law invested in the diner, I’d finally been able to hire more staff and promote my friend Javier from cook to assistant manager. That should have taken a lot of weight off my shoulders. But even with more help, I’d kept working opening to closing, seven days a week. I had a hard time delegating, or maybe letting go, so this weekend was the first time I’d taken a few days off and left Javier in charge.
I was supposed to be back at work first thing tomorrow morning, so I called Javier and asked if he’d mind covering for me while I took an extra day off. His response was, “Take all the time you need, bro! In fact, take all of next week off if you want to. I promise I’ve got everything under control.” He was obviously enjoying getting to run the show for a change.
While that was great, I couldn’t help but feel a bit obsolete. My son was all grown up and married now, and he didn’t really need me anymore. To be fair, he hadn’t needed me in a long time. But now the diner didn’t really need me, either.
I couldn’t keep hiding behind excuses, or claiming to be too busy. It was time to start living my life.
Once I ended the call with Javier, I clicked on the text message I’d received that morning. It said:This is Salvatore. I really hope I get to see you again.
My palms felt sweaty, and my heart started to race as I sent a reply:I decided to stay an extra day, so are you free for dinner tonight?
3
Salvatore
