He turned away from her at the door and walked out into the rain. His chest was tight, and each step took him farther from where he wanted to be. Three blocks away, he stopped, needing more than anything to tell her. Turning back, he began to run as fast as he could, and when he reached her door, drenched and breathless, he knocked. It opened, and she stood there.
He faltered, made up an excuse, and left.
Later she would tell him that she had known, but since he couldn’t be honest with her it would never work.
High school was treacherous
until she met the “living room boys.”
That summer new worlds opened up.
No more lonely afternoons.
No more backstabbing girl “friends.”
No more feeling left behind and alone.
She became one of them.
They bonded quickly.
Late nights at Lyons with bottomless coffee
…Inside jokes and movie references
…Cemetery walks and ghost stories
…Adventures in “Harrison” the Pinto
She felt loved.
And they did love her.
It was a pure love, untainted by adult complications.
Awkward. Beautiful. Agonizing.
She held them at arms length.
Oh those living room boys…
How she loved you deeply.