[Twice Featured Noteworthy Novel & Staff Pick on Tapas.io] ✔
[Previously featured on Tapas.io's LGBTQ+ Community collection] ✔
One night. That was all it took for Senn Reyes' life to change drastically--and permanently.
Senn Reyes is a seventeen-y...
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Sunday
After Senn had found himself wandering over to Elio's home—his old home—the day before, he felt liberated from worries for a short while. Senn hadn't been able to ask Elio much questions after he finally confirmed he in fact turned Joyce down for him. Senn had kissed Elio, but seconds later, his brother Joseph had interrupted by walking into the kitchen, claiming most of their attention throughout the evening.
They hadn't been alone after that.
It had worn Senn out to hang out with Joseph all evening, but he had felt happy thanks to Joseph's careless attitude the entire evening. He also felt as if Elio and he grew a little closer now that Senn had met his family, and spent his time entertaining Joseph, despite the guy's disabilities. Joseph needed a lot of care and attention, yes, but to Senn it was mostly light-hearted fun to spend time with Joseph—who didn't mind playing memory all evening long—and Senn didn't realize how much he needed something simple like a game of memory until afterwards.
Still, he just wanted to lay down on his makeshift bed in Killian's room, and sleep. He couldn't wait until his room was far enough done to sleep in again. Why had he decided to paint his room this particular weekend?
Of course, Julian turned out to be there, hanging out with Killian, playing video games once again. And since Senn couldn't escape to the privacy of his own room and just go to bed, he joined them until far into the night.
It made things even more confusing to get to know Julian like that all over again as well. They hadn't ever hung out aside from their escapes to the treehouse. They had talked a lot, Senn knew that much. But actually, getting to see him hang out with Killian was new to him; Senn and Julian, for all he remembered, avoided each other when in company of others, simply because they didn't want anyone to know what was going on. Only ever did they talk to each other at parties; briefly.
Senn felt conflicted. Both Elio and Julian were fun to hang out with. Both seemed to really like him, and both seemed caring and patient with him. They both looked good, they had the same type of humor, they even shared some interests.
There was just one difference between the two; he had spent an entire evening with Elio, cooking, playing memory with Joseph, talking and making fun. Not once had he thought about Julian.
Once he came home, he spent a few hours in the company of Julian and Killian, and instead of focusing on Julian, his mind had continuously taken him back to his latest kiss with Elio—short, but sweet. He lost a few games simply due to the fact he kept thinking about the looks Elio had given him throughout the night, or the moment he finally confirmed that he indeed turned down Joyce for him.
The only thing that had kept him from stopping Julian from quickly giving him a kiss when Killian went to the bathroom, was the memory of how hopeful Julian had looked last time they talked. Or how defeated he looked when he talked about his family. How was he going to tell Julian that he felt as if he liked Elio more, while Julian already had so much to deal with?
