Loose Ends

005.

 Summer has always been Caius' least favourite season. It's too hot, the heat seeping into the wall's and battling with the AC in the Bennett's Hampton house. He barely gets to see his friends in the summer, usually confined to just his parents and the house staff he can harass into spending time with him.

 But this summer is different -- oh boy, is it ever different. This summer he has Park.

 The Sinclair's have purchased an estate just two blocks from the Bennett's, and just like Cai, they're staying until labour day. That means two whole months with Park. 

 This is going to be the best summer of Cai's entire god damn life.

 Right now he's attending brunch with his parents. His mother is dolled up in some billowy dress, her blond hair pinned neatly on her head. His father is wearing a polo shirt with shorts -- something that told Cai he was most definitely meeting up with his friends after this. Cai himself was in shorts and a band shirt he may or may not have stolen from Park -- his mother raised an eyebrow at it but decided not to comment, thank god. 

 "So, Caius. You've been spending a lot of time with that Sinclair boy, hmm?" His mother's voice is quiet, his father's eyes not leaving the paper he was reading.

 Cai nearly chokes on his orange juice, sputtering a moment before coughing out a muffed "yeah, yeah." His mother simply rolls her eyes, telling him to slow down.

 "His parents are lovely, Irene and -- oh what was it, darling, Henry?" She turns to Cai's father, lips pursed.

 "Harold," He replies, flicking through to the next page of the paper.

 "Ah yes, Harold." She smiles, smoothing out her dress and signaling for Lucille, one of their newer housekeepers to take her plate away. "Parker seems sweet, although I have heard a few worrying rumours from some of the girls at bookclub."

 Cai fights the urge to roll his eyes. His mother's 'bookclub' is basically just an excuse for middle-aged women to gather around and gossip. He can't help but be intrigued, though. Park hasn't told him much about his life, you can't blame Cai for being curious.

 "What sort of rumours?" He asks it casually, making an effort not to appear too curious.

 "Oh, I'm sure they're just that -- rumours. But he apparently got into some trouble back in London, a relationship his parents didn't approve of, something along those lines. Whatever it was it was bad enough to make them decide to move to a whole new continent." She shrugs, taking a sip of her coffee.

 Cai is confused, to say the least. He'd just figured that the Sinclair's moved here for work or something, he certainly hadn't thought that it had been because Park had done something wrong. 

 "I'm sure that's not the whole story." Is all he says, finishing his eggs benedict and slumping back in his chair. His mother opens her mouth to tell him to sit up but he's straightening his back before she can even get the words out. She smiles at him. 

 "You women and your gossip. I didn't hear anything like that from Harold -- said they just moved here for a change of scenery." His father pipes up, although that doesn't do much to relax Caius. 

 There must be something Park wasn't telling him, something he was too ashamed to tell him about. Or maybe he was still dating someone who lived in London -- oh god, what if he was dating a girl from London?

 He abruptly pushed back from the table. "May I be excused, please?" His father finally looks up from the paper to give him a nod.

---

 Five minutes later Cai is pacing in his bedroom, finger hovering over the 'send' button on his phone. He can't decide if he should actually confront Park about this. It's not like they're official or anything, Park isn't his boyfriend. He doesn't think he is, at least. But if Park is seeing someone else he deserves to know, right? 

 He definitely deserves to know. 

 He reads over the message one final time before shakily pressing the send button.

 Cai: Hey. I have something I have to ask you about, can we get together later if you're not busy? 

Park: Sounds serious. Should I be scared?

Cai: Just meet me, please.

Park: Okay. Lunch at Margaret's?

Cai: See you then.

He tosses his phone back on the bed, flopping down on his pillows. He hopes this isn't going to ruin things, end Cai and Park before they've even really begun. But he can't be in a relationship with secrets, it's unhealthy. Not that Cai knows much about relationships, he'd dated a girl named Cassie back in the eighth grade and promptly realized he was most definitely gay after she stuck her tongue down his throat. 

 But still, he doesn't want his relationship with Park to be like that. If they even end up having a relationship, that is.

☀☀☀

This chapter is kinda short/boring but it sets things up nicely for the next chapter which you should be excited for because we get to learn more about Park's back story yaaaaaaay!! Anyway comments and votes are always appreciated.