Now You Know ✅

Chapter 27: Treatment of Silence

"I take it neither of you still hasn't talked yet?"

April just had to mention it, for Roshon had walked past her and Pelham without much as a single glance, as though they were trees standing on one side of the cobblestoned path leading to the main entrance of their school. Apart from that, Roshon was walking with another one of his friends, whom Pelham recognised as one of the ICT students. Not that Pelham was expecting anything from Roshon - not even a nod of greeting. Neither of them had talked since the day after he came out to Roshon, which was more than a week ago.

If it was anything, Pelham thought that it was completely up to Roshon on whether he felt like sparing a word or two. After all - as much as he hated to admit the truth - Roshon was the one who was suddenly giving him the silent treatment. And he had a decent guess why.

Undeniably, their lack of interaction was beginning to twist his guts, like revolving a fork into a bowl of spaghetti. And he was nowhere near liking it. Roshon was his best friend. They'd had their faith in each other since their early adolescent years. Now, Pelham was having doubts. Had be been obscured by the vision that having Roshon as a best friend meant that he could tell him everything? What did he know about Roshon, really?

With that came the same question: What did Roshon know about Pelham, really?

"Not a word," Pelham said in response to April's question, watching Roshon laugh with his seemingly substituted friend as they stepped into the hall.

"And to think boys cool off easily," April sighed, shaking her head as she leaned back against the bench, folding up her knees to her chest as she did so.

"And to think your boyfriend is straight,"

April snorted. "That's pathetic. Your best friend is ignoring you 'cause you came out to him, now you're making jokes about yourself," she said, trying to suppress her laughter.

"Technically, I was making a joke about you. But that backfired, apparently,"

"Don't roast yourself,"

Pelham smiled. And it felt alien to feel the muscles in his cheeks contract just to pull the corners of his lips up into an expression that indicated he was feeling all right, that he was at least happy. It was considerably odd, he thought, how nearly the entire world depended on physical features to resolve to a conclusion, while only a handful of people could see through those masks as though they were glass windows. April was undeniably one of the handful.

Though, every now and then, Pelham couldn't resolve whether he was smiling just to convince himself or the people around him.

"Hey, you gonna talk to him?" April asked when Pelham was wallowed yet again into another dense silence.

Still not taking his eyes off the spot where Roshon had occupied a few minutes ago, he said, "He'll just come up with a reason to avoid me."

"Not your arse of a so-called best friend," April brought her forefinger and thumb to clench around Pelham's chin and turned his head to the other side, so he was now facing the school compound. His eyes immediately landed on Lucio, who was currently shrugging on his school blazer. "Your future spouse right over there."

"Oh, so now you think he and I are gonna get married and adopt kids?" Pelham said. "April, just because we're both gay, it doesn't mean we have a massive crush towards one another."

April didn't look the least bit convinced by the last statement. In fact, her eyebrows merely rose in scepticism. Then something seemed to pull her back from her fleeting realm. "Wait, 'we'?" she said, her eyes widening. "Not you and I, technically. You meant you and him. He's gay?"