Wrong • Joshler • 2nd version

Chapter!Two

"Hi, Mom! This is my new friend, Josh"

"Nice to meet you, Mrs Joseph" Josh smiled widely at the grinning woman. Tyler went in for a hug and Josh just shook her hand. They stood in the spacious kitchen; Tyler's father was standing a few feet behind his wife and was reading newspapers. He only rose his head to quickly greet Josh and nod at the boys.

"We're gonna go to my room an-" Tyler started to say but was cut off by Josh

"Are you aware of your son's homosexuality?"

Tyler's jaw dropped at the words. Mr Joseph looked up from the papers and Mrs Joseph stood equally shook. Tyler was standing frozen and waiting for his parents' responses nervously. Josh, on the other hand, didn't really understand the sudden tension and just waited for the answers.

"Excuse me?" Mrs Joseph finally said in reply, brows furrowed. Mr Joseph rose his head from his papers and stared at the boys with a slight cringe on his face.

Tyler started talking nervously and quick "Josh and I have homework to do, I'll see you later, yeah? Yeah. Bye, Mom and Dad! I love you!"

Tyler than grabbed Josh by the wrist and pulled him towards the staircase.

Josh was pretty surprised by what just happened. But he also kind of understood. Tyler was hiding from his parents. Which meant Mr and Mrs Joseph are probably normal people like Josh and the rest of his family. Well, Tyler was a normal person too, just very lost in his mind and occupied by silly imaginations.

No worries, though. Josh will fix Tyler.

"Let's go" Tyler said, leading the way up to his room. They climbed up the stairs and were already entering the room; it was literally right in front of them once they reached the top of the stairs.

Josh looked around the small bedroom. Tyler's bed was messy, just like his desk. The walls were in a babyblue color, covered in small pictures of basketball players and a few posters of an odd looking band; well, odd to Josh. There were small basketball balls hanging off the ceiling on thin strings. Pretty much everything was basketball ball themed, confusing Josh.

He thus frowned and asked "Didn't you say you were gay?"

"Yeah" Tyler replied, not understanding where Josh was going with this.

"But you like basketball?" Josh continued, gesturing toward the decorations in the room with his hand.

Tyler put his backpack down on the ground and crossed his arms on his chest "I do. What, if I'm gay I can't like basketball?"

"No, no, no!" Josh defended himself "I just thought 'gay' guys were more into, I don't know, sewing or cooking or something"

Tyler laughed, shaking his head and eventually cupping his face with his hands "You're unbelievable, Josh"

Josh's brows furrowed at the words, but he decided not to question them. He had something else to ask anyways "Why didn't you let me talk to your mother?"

Tyler stopped laughing, gulping "Um, well, you see, some not-straight people have troubles with telling their parents about their sexuality. It's called being closeted. And that's my case. They'd kill me if they knew I was gay"

"That's dumb" Josh commented, crossing his arms on his chest "Why do you speak of it so freely in school then? And besides, they wouldn't kill you - they're your parents, for God's sake!"

"My parents are homophobes" Tyler tried explaining "They're like you. If they knew, they'd hate me. Like you"

"I don't hate you" Josh corrected, slightly offended "I'm just saying what you think you are is wrong"

"Since we're correcting each other" Tyler smirked "You're saying who I know I am is wrong"

Josh just shook his head, finally resting his schoolbag on the ground next to Tyler's. Tyler laughed quietly and victoriously, sitting down on the laminate floor. Josh watched him, hesitating, but eventually sitting down as well.

"Do you want to start with Maths or something else?" Josh asked, opening his schoolbag and taking his pencil box out. He quickly found his mechanical pencil and eraser.

"Nah, Pete told me I don't have to write my Maths homework" Tyler waved him off.

Josh's jaw dropped "What?!"

Tyler shrugged with a soft chuckle "Pete says our Maths teacher never checks homework, so that allows us not to write it at all"

Josh shook his head, narrowing his eyes a little at Tyler "It doesn't matter, you have to write your homework. It helps you study"

"Who the hell studies for Maths?!" Tyler laughed out loud.

"I do!"

Tyler just continued to laugh, but Josh was starting to get annoyed. Homosexuality wasn't the only thing wrong about Tyler. There were many other things as well. Such as his parents who obviously did a bad job at raising their child, the very fact he finds loopholes in school, the way he talks. So many things. But Josh couldn't fix all of them. He'll do his best with the homosexuality thingy, but he wasn't sure if he had any chonce in even trying to fix other things.

"Tell you what" Tyler spoke when he stopped laughing "Let's put our homework aside and start with the whole idea of 'fixing my homosexuality', yeah?"

Hesitantly, Josh put his pencil and eraser aside "Okay, sure"

"I'll start, if that's okay?" Josh nodded at Tyler's question "Josh, have you ever kissed a boy? Or a girl? Or anyone at all?"