Of course she does; you’re a jacked stud with an amazing heart. Any girl would be lucky to be with you.
“What about you, buddy? Got any hot dates? I’m sure there must be lots of chicks at your school who dig the smart guys.”
“No,” I said, feeling a little sad.
I’d always found ways to redirect conversations when Archer had asked be about my romantic relationships. Considering he was about a smart as a slice of buttered toast, it hadn’t been too difficult.
I felt some urge inside of me. Maybe I wanted to finally be accepted by a guy who so reminded me of the jocks who bullied me for being gay. Maybe I wanted to end things on my own terms, rather than to just let him move away.
“Can I tell you something, Archer?”
“Yeah, B. You know you’re my bud.”
“Well… I guess… I… um, I don’t really like girls.”
Archer made his trademark expression of pure confusion. It was like I’d just asked him for his thoughts on moral relativity or the Big Bang theory.
“Huh?”
“I don’t like girls. Well, not in that way.”
The wheels were stilling spinning in his head. There was only one thing I could say to make it clear.
“I’m gay.”
Archer was only the third person I’d ever said those word to. The first two had been my mom and dad. I waited with bated breath to see how he’d respond. My head was buzzing; my ears were ringing.
“Oh,” he said as he started walking towards the door. “Well, I hope you have a good night.”
Just like that, the door shut behind him. I stood there replaying what had just happened on a loop in my mind. I tried to analyze the look that’d been on his face for hints of revulsion or disgust. By the time I’d finished, I’d determined I’d just ruined everything.
That night sucked. I had a hard time falling asleep. All I wanted to do was cry. I thought about texting him to say that it had just been a joke. I knew I could probably spin it into a stupid prank. I didn’t, though. For whatever reason, I needed him to know the truth, no matter how much it hurt.
When I showed up for work the next day, I wondered if Archer was just going to treat me like a stranger, or if he might not come at all. I figured it wouldn’t be too odd if he just left the job a week early. He was still a high school kid, after all.
I had my back turned to the entrance when the door opened. I couldn’t bring myself to face him. I could already picture the steely look on his face and him not wanting to make eye contact.
“B!” Archer called out.
I can’t ignore him forever. I slowly spun around. What the…? I nearly burst out laughing; Archer did the same.
He looked so ridiculous. He was wearing a skin-tight T-shirt covered with a rhinestone rainbow flag; it read “Love is Love” below the design. It looked so odd compared to his baggy cargo shorts.
“Do you like it?” he asked with a beaming smile. “I wanted to wear something to show you l support you no matter what, bro, but it’s not exactly like I had anything of my own to wear. My cousin is bisexual and she let me borrow this. She says I owe her twenty bucks if I stretch it out too bad.”
I had been certain that he hadn’t taken the news well. He’d practically bolted from the building. Clearly, I’d been wrong.
“I… I thought I’d messed up our friendship when I told you. You just seemed so… unaffected.”
“I just needed to get home to give our dog her medicine. Remember, I told you she hurt her eye so we have to put drops in it six times a day? I got stuck with 12:30 a.m. since nobody else is awake.”
It completely fit with Archer’s personality. He had been so worried about taking care of his dog that he hadn’t been able to multitask.
“And the answer is ‘yes,'” I said. “I like the shirt. You should probably take it off, though, if you don’t want it to rip. I’m not even sure how you got into it.”
“I had to pretend I was a snake and wriggle a lot.”
Archer tried to pull at the fabric, but it was as tight as a sausage casing. I had him stick his arms into the air while I gently pulled at the hem to free him. He stood there shirtless; we gazed into one another’s eyes. I suddenly wanted to kiss him; I knew I wouldn’t, though.
I reached up and squeezed his shoulder. I let myself inhale his scent deep into my lungs. “You’re a good guy, Archer. I hope you know that.”
Archer and I shifted into our routine after a few minutes. I really worked over his hole during our lotion application procedure. I hadn’t let myself do it since that first time, but I wiggled my fingertip an inch inside of him. I felt so connected with him; he did his best to bite his lip to keep from moaning, but it was obvious he liked how it made him feel. Our time at the cock washing machine was just as intense. He shot the biggest load down my throat; all of the backdoor stimulation had paid off.
Archer asked me more about my sexuality once we started our actual work. I told him things I’d never have dreamed of sharing when we’d first met. I disclosed that I was a virgin and I was nervous about having sex. He tried to reassure me that it’d be fine when I lost it. When he asked me what type of guys I liked, I told him I didn’t really have one category. Guys like you, I guess, is what I’d really wanted to say.
I felt wistful for the next few days. I tried to enjoy my limited time with my sweet, dumb hunk, but I felt sad as well. It was only when I had my hands on his body or his dick in my mouth that I was truly able to give myself over to the present moment.
I don’t know how I thought of the idea. It was like it just snuck into my mind. I did realize, however, that I had to try it.
On the second-to-last day of working together, I stood waiting by the desk, feeling as anxious as I had when I’d first started making plans to get Archer naked. He looked so good in his fitted white T-shirt and blue jeans when he entered the room. I already knew he wasn’t wearing underwear. He hadn’t for weeks.
“Hey, Archer. How’s it going?”
“Good. I was just at the gym. Just broke my old squat record!”
“Congratulations, that’s awesome.”
“Thanks, buddy. What about you? How’s your day?”
“Not going the best, I guess. You know how I told you I’ve never hooked up with another guy, right? Well… I decided to get myself on the apps to try to find someone. I thought it’d be nice to be with someone for the summer and finally lose my virginity.”
“Nice, bud. I’m sure you’ll be swimming in dicks in no time. Or, butts? Dicks, butts, whatever you want!”
Archer shook his head and chuckled; it was clear he was trying to be supportive but lacked enough knowledge to say the right thing. It didn’t matter much to me anyway. I knew his heart was in the right place.
“Yeah, well… all the profiles have the same type of photos on them. I took some of them myself, but I can’t take others.”
“I can help. I’ve taken plenty of pics of myself to send to girls. They all seemed pretty happy when they got ’em. I could take some of you shirtless or in your boxers, if that’d make things easier.”
His dimples made me want to reach out and pinch his cheeks. As always, I wanted more than that too, but they were just so adorable.