| |
The first few times Evan and Jeremy hung out after the kiss, there was a definite sense of coolness from Evan. He seemed quieter, more serious. Tense and uptight, which Jeremy had come to realize was pretty much Evan’s reaction to anything that made him uncomfortable. If Jeremy resorted to humor, Evan was the complete opposite.
Thankfully, as the weeks passed, the tension faded, and they regained a lot of their earlier comfort. Jeremy didn’t have to keep such a tight rein on his mouth, and Evan lost the stiffness in his shoulders and smiled more.
They finished all five seasons of Six Feet Under and moved onto The Sopranos, which was less awkward since the only major gay character didn’t appear until the fifth season. Evan seemed to like the show, but tonight, he’d been yawning non-stop. Apparently, the funeral home had been particularly busy, and he’d been working extra-long shifts lately.
Jeremy heard a quiet snore and glanced over to see Evan slumped down, head crooked to one side and nearly on Jeremy’s shoulder. Evan’s lips were slightly parted, his lashes long against his pale cheeks, and Jeremy looked away when they fluttered. But Evan didn’t wake, just shifted, his head lolling against Jeremy’s right shoulder. Jeremy flinched in surprise but didn’t push Evan away.
Evan reached out, his hand grasping at air until it landed on Jeremy’s shirt. He clenched it in his fist and sighed, all the tension leaking out of his body until he was soft and pliant against Jeremy. If Jeremy closed his eyes, he could forget for a second how fucked-up his left side was and believe this young, sweet thing was his. Before Jeremy could stop himself, he threaded his fingers through Evan’s hair. It was soft, almost silky under his fingertips. Evan let out the quietest sigh, and Jeremy felt his chest nearly cave under the pressure. Goddamn it, the kid made him want too much.
Gently, so as not to disturb him, Jeremy eased out from under Evan’s grasp and slipped a pillow under his head. He stared down at him for a long moment, hands clenched in fists to keep himself from reaching for Evan.
“You’re killing me, kid,” he whispered.
***
A few hours later, Jeremy heard something buzz, but it wasn’t his phone. A moment later, Evan stretched with a groan. Jeremy tried not to stare at the sliver of bare skin between Evan’s T-shirt and jeans, the edge of his blue boxers barely peeking out. Jeremy shifted uncomfortably in the hard kitchen chair and fixed his eyes on the baseball game on the TV game in front of him.
“Ugh, sorry I passed out,” Evan said.
“It’s fine. You warned me you were tired. You probably needed the extra sleep.”
Something buzzed again, and Jeremy glanced over to see Evan digging in his pocket. Jeremy wondered who was calling him and suppressed a surge of jealousy at the thought Evan might have met a guy.
But Evan was frowning at his phone, looking puzzled and worried all at once. “What the ...”
Jeremy hit mute on the TV and looked at Evan more closely. “Everything okay?”
“My parents are calling me.”
Jeremy frowned. He’d heard more than enough about Evan’s family to know hearing from them wasn’t a good thing. “Have you been talking to them lately?”
“No. They haven’t tried to call once since I left Putnam. For all they knew, I was jobless, homeless, and living on the street.” Evan looked up at Jeremy as the phone vibrated in his hand. “What the hell could they want?” He seemed to be pleading with Jeremy for answers, but he didn’t have them.
“Maybe they want to make sure you’re okay?” Jeremy said, but even to his own ears, he sounded doubtful. “It is possible they changed their minds.”
“They didn’t give a shit about me when I lived at home,” Evan pointed out.
“Then don’t answer if you don’t want to. You don’t owe them anything.” Shit, Jeremy knew that better than anyone did.
Sighing, Evan looked back down at his phone as it continued to buzz. “I know, but I think it’ll bug me unless I figure out what they want.” His thumb hesitated over the screen, and Jeremy knew he wanted to answer.
“If you want some privacy, you can go in my bedroom.” Jeremy pointed toward his room.
Evan nodded and stood. “Thanks,” he said absently, staring down at his phone as he walked away.