How to Be a Virgin

rєѕρєcт нιѕ вσυn∂αrιєѕ

CHAPTER 18

[ Mike ]

     My mom had done everything in her power to win the custody battle to be my permanent and only guardian. Judges tended to give the children to their mothers because of their motherly nature, but the odds had been in my dad's favor since he was a professional soccer player, and he had the means to provide for me financially. Regrettably, she won the custody battle.

Don't get me wrong: I loved my mom with all of my heart and then some, but I also wondered what it would've been like if I had been raised by my father instead. He was cooler, more relaxed, and way funnier than my mom would ever be.

And that's exactly why I had decided to spend the weekend with him. We had spent the majority of Saturday morning just kicking around a soccer ball and talking about the current state of our lives. He found a new girlfriend, I had learned, and her name was Gloria. He talked about her like she was the love of his life, but I knew it wouldn't last long. He always had high hopes when it came to his long list of girlfriends, but none of them ever turned into anything. Sometimes, I liked to think that I inherited my hopeless romantic nature, among other things, from him.

"Hey, Dad?" I questioned after he threw the soccer ball at me and I trapped it with the inside of my thigh, allowing it to drop to my feet so I could kick it back to me.

"Yeah, what's up?" He kicked the ball back to me and placed his hands on his waist, taking on a serious stance.

"What would you say if I told you that I have a boyfriend?" I probed with a brow lifted in curiosity. Both of my parents knew about my sexuality and they seemed to be okay with it, but this was the first time that I had ever found someone to be with in a more-than-friend kind of way. The thought scared the hell out of me.

"I'd say that it's about time." He stopped kicking the ball to me and pulled his lips into a full grin. "Is it Derek?"

I crinkled my nose with confusion. "What? Why would it be Derek?"

"You used to tell me about how much you liked him and how—"

"Dad, please stop talking," I blurted out before he could continue any further. I didn't want to be reminded of the hardcore crush I had on Derek Fletcher when I first met him. It was weird how he could have that effect on anyone, gay or straight, male or female. "It's not Derek."

His blond eyebrows sewed together in a line as he scratched the back of his head. "Then who?"

"His name is Noah," I said, "and he's a really nice guy. He cares about me and he ... he listens to me, you know? Not a lot of people like to hear me speak."

He scoffed. "Son, that's nonsense."

"It's the truth," I assured him. "Noah's the only one who actually wants to be around me. I don't have to go out of my way to get him to notice me or anything like that." I didn't really grasp the intensity of what I was saying until I said it aloud. Of course I knew that Noah was different than anyone I had met in a long time, and yet, I was an absolute dick to him. How could I have done that? How could I have hurt his feelings like that?

"Then good for you," he commented with the hint of a proud smile on his face, but his attention quickly shifted to his cell phone when it chimed in the pocket of his sweatpants. He gave me an apologetic look before answering the phone call and walking towards a far enough location of his backyard.