Holidays

Chapter 5: Valen-times: Joel

There was the only out gay guy at Joel’s school, Arya. He didn’t have a crush on him or anything, but he thought he’d ask him out to see if they had any chemistry.

The last bell of the school day rang and Joel caught up to Arya. They walked and talked.

“Hey, you need a ride home?” Joel asked Arya.

“Do I know you?”

“No, but I know you. You came out as gay a few months ago.”

“Everybody knows I’m gay. That’s why I came out, so I could be out and proud. What’s it to you?”

“I just came out to my family as gay.”

“Really? That’s nice.”

“So, do you want a ride or not?”

“No thanks, I’ll take the bus. I don’t take rides from strangers.”

They walk out of the science building.

“Last chance, my car’s over there,” Joel pointed at his red convertible in the parking lot.

“Fine, I hate the bus anyway,” Arya replied.

They walked over to Joel’s convertible.

“How did you afford this car?”

“I work a lot.”

“Where do you work, Starcrux?”

“No, I work at MB.”

“Oh.”

“Hop in.”

Arya jumped into the passenger’s seat and Joel started the car. He drove out of the parking lot and onto the main road.

“I live on River Street a few streets down the road,” Arya said.

Joel took a left.

“Hey, you’re going the wrong way. I live over there.”

“I’m taking a shortcut.” Joel sped up.

“Let me out of this car, you freak. Where are you taking me?”

“A secret place.”

“A secret place to makeout?”

“You’ll see.”

Joel drove to the outskirts of town, where an old ice cream shop sat.

“You brought me to get ice cream?”

“Yeah, what did you think? I was going to murder you?”

“Yes,” Arya admitted as he jumped out of the car.

Joel laughed and asked, “What flavor do you want?”

“I always get mint chocolate chip.”

“Me too!”

“It’s my favorite.”

“Mine too.”

They waited in line and once they got to the counter Joel said, “Two small mint chips.”

“In a cup or a cone?” the female cashier asked.

“In a cup,” Joel and Arya both said.

“That’ll be six-thirty,” the cashier replied.

Joel handed her a ten-dollar bill and she handed him back the change.

They waited for their ice cream at a nearby table until another cashier shouted, “Two small mint chips!”

Joel grabbed the ice cream and sat back down.

“So, how is it?”

“So good, maybe one of the best mint chip ice creams I’ve ever had. How did you find out about this place?”

“I used to work here.”

“Why did you quit?”

“I got sick of it. Scooping the ice cream and handing the customers their ice cream. It got old.”

“I understand that. I used to work at Mart Mart and I quit. I got sick of saying, ‘Welcome to Mart Mart. How are you today?’ and giving them back their change .”

“Sounds fun,” Joel said with sarcasm.

“I don’t usually do this. I’ve never done this, but Valentine’s Day is coming up and I don’t have a date. Do you want to go to a poetry reading with me?”

“I would love to.”

“It’s at the bookstore downtown. I was gonna share one of my poems.”

“What’s the theme of the poetry night?”

“Romance because it’s on Valentine’s day.”

“Maybe I’ll write a poem and share it. It shouldn’t be that hard.”

“Poetry isn’t easy. There are stanzas, rhyming, metaphors, and it has to have meaning.”

“It’ll be easy as eating this ice cream,” Joel replied as his ice cream dripped onto his pants.

They finished their ice cream and threw out their cups. Joel drove Arya home.

On Joel’s ride home, he was so excited. My first date with a guy! What should I wear? What will he wear? What should I write about?

Joel got home and after he finished his homework, he tried to type a poem on his computer. First, he needed a title, “First Date”. Good one. Then he needed to write the stanzas. “You’ve dressed to the nines…and your partner looks divine-”

“No, no,” Joel said to himself as he deleted the second line.

“It’s like the stars have aligned…for us to meet here tonight…with the moon so bright…But will the clouds…shroud the sky…and ruin it all? Will my nerves take over…Or will I recover?…”

“Onto the next stanza,” Joel said.

“Then I look at you.”

Joel continued writing the poem until he felt it was complete. He saved the file on his computer and put it in a digital folder.

Valentine’s night, Joel walked into the book store. He swerved around the bookshelves until he found the cafe area. They hadn’t started yet, they were still setting up and checking the mic.

Joel waited for his date and he finally arrived in the middle of the first poem reading. The poet finished.

In between poets building up the confidence to read in front of an audience, Arya asked Joel, “Did you write a poem to share?”

“I did, it’s in my pocket.”

“You did! Was it harder to write than you thought?”

“Yes, actually.”

“Can I read it?’

“No, you can hear it like everyone else here”

“Oh, alright.”

A few more poets read their poems into the microphone and then it was Arya’s turn. He walked up the steps of the stage and said, “Hi, everyone. I’m Arya and this poem is titled ‘Boy’.” He read of his paper:

Boy

I’ll treat you like a boy,

Not a boy toy.

It’s all a part of my ploy

To get you to be my boy.

I want you.

I got you

In my tractor beam.

It may seem

Like I’m being coy,

But I’m not.

In the past

It’s been hiding

behind a mask,

hiding who I really am.

Now that I’m me,

I can be

With you.

Arya got off the stage as everyone snapped and he sat back down.

“That was great. Now it’s my turn,” Joel said.

“Thanks, you’ll do amazing up there,’ Arya replied.

Joel walked up the stage and adjusted the mic stand. He removed the paper from his back pocket and unfolded it. He read off it:

First Date

You’ve dressed to the nines

And it’s like the stars have aligned

For us to meet here tonight

With the moon so bright.

But will the clouds

shroud the sky

and ruin all of this?

Will my nerves take over

Or will I recover?

Then I look at you

You look so cute

And everything feels right.

I embrace you and hold you tight

For tonight.

We talk and really connect.

Then we get the check

And we fight over who will pay.

But we decide to split it two ways.

“Will I see you again?” I ask.

“Yes,” they reply.

I jump up in excitement.

Everyone snaps and Joel gets off the stage. He returns to his seat.

“That was cute,” Arya said.

They listen to the other poets.

At the end of the reading, they break for tea and snacks.

Everyone compliments each other and they all leave.

“That was a great night. Will I see you again?” Joel asked Arya.

“Yes.”

“Do you need a ride home?”

“No, my mom is picking me up.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.”

Joel drove away and thought about his first date. Is that all I am to him? A first experience? Someone he can love?