Then You Came Along

Chapter 4

The next day in school, I arrive a little later than usual, and I have to catch up with Pen and Giddy at Giddy's locker. I meet them engrossed in conversation.

"Hey, guys."

Giddy stops talking and turns to me, and Pen looks at me, too, checking me up and down and probably counting my limbs to ensure I'm complete. "You're late."

"Yeah, I didn't get the early bus. Had to run and take the train," I answer, a little out of breath. The worst part is that I don't even have an explanation as to why I am late.

"Whoa, are you alright?" Giddy ask, giving me a concerned look.

"Yup," I grab my hair and force it into a ponytail. "What were you both talking about?"

"Giddy was catfished," Pen says with a smile, and my eyes go wide as I turn to Giddy concerned and curious.

"That not a good thing, Pen," Giddy says with a frown. "You shouldn't be smiling."

"Right," she frowns too and blinks her eyes when we raise our brows at her. "No, I'm not happy that happened. I'm just excited that you got the experience; although it's unfortunate that it happened, at least now you know what it feels like to be catfished. I've always wondered myself. Remember how we watch movies, and you'd swear that you can't be tricked like that? Now it happened, now you understand."

I understand her clearly, which makes me wonder if I'm just as crazy as she must be.

Giddy folds his arms in front of him with a frown, "You're not my friend, Pen."

"Sorry."

"Tell me. Who catfished you and how?" I say, still confused.

"Well, I've been talking to this guy on Grindr—" Giddy starts explaining, and I cut him off.

"Grindr?"

"Don't judge me. Finding another gay guy who might want to date me is not easy." Giddy whines, then facepalms. "Although I should have known this would happen."

"Giddy," Pen, and I call, placing a hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

He sighs, "I just wanted a guy to talk to. I know only two other gays here in school, and they don't like me, or I don't like them. It's not fair that it's so hard to get a boyfriend in this town."

"How did you even meet the catfish guy? What happened?" I ask. I can feel his sadness, and I am curious. I know being gay is hard but what could have pushed Giddy into the hands of a criminal?

"We matched, and we started talking. We had so much in common, and I thought he would. Then I asked to meet. I pleaded to meet because we've been chatting for weeks, and he has been 'too busy' to meet up." Giddy rolls his eyes as he pauses.

"That should have been your sign," Pen says, and we all nod.

"Yup," Giddy agrees and continues his story. "Anyway, he finally agreed, and I lied to my parents that I was going to the library, but then I went to the park to meet him. And you wouldn't believe what I found."

"What?"

"A probably fifty-five-year-old man with a bald head and a goatee dressed up like a hippie."

"Oh," I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't that.

"Yeah, and instead of him to at least pretend that he didn't know I was seventeen and in high school, he was trying to behave normally. Like our age difference means absolutely nothing."

"Oh."

"He's a pervert," Pen says, removing her glasses to wipe at it. "You should have called the cops."