“You know, this isn’t the first time I’ve watched her,” I said, slightly annoyed. “Besides, she’s twelve-years-old. It doesn’t take much to entertain her.”

“Yeah, yeah. You know my cell and you know my mom’s job number. She doesn’t get off work until midnight tonight.”

I nodded. “Yes, I know. Now hurry up and when you come back, give me all the details.”

“That I will,” Alex replied. “I owe you one, Ethan.” He hugged me before he opened the door and left.

“You deserve a break,” I said softly to the closed door.

Alex did deserve a break. Ever since his father died and he became ‘man of the house’, it hasn’t been easy. His mom, Elizabeth, had to work another shift in order to keep paying the mortgage. Alex also found a job with me at the local supermarket. We normally got off at around seven o’clock, so Tiffany normally walks over to my house with my little brother Eric. She stays there until we get home before Alex picks her up.

Normally, they only saw their mother on the weekends, and sometimes barely. She slept most of Saturday and on Sundays she spends time with them. Occasionally, she gets a Friday or a Thursday off. Whenever that happens, she normally comes to pick Alex and me up after school before going to get Tiffany and Eric. She’d either take us out to eat something or she’d take us to the movies.

It was really nice. I loved going out to eat with Alex. We would choose something each of us wanted and share the two plates. I’d eat half of my food while he ate half of his and then we’d switch plates. It didn’t matter that we used the same utensils; we’ve been friends since we were in day care, so it didn’t really matter. A sharp feeling of smugness hit me in the gut when I thought of Jessica finding out that I had been sort of swapping spit with Alex since we were five. My nose scrunched up slightly and I shook my head. I knew my jealousy and feelings were irrational and stupid. Still, it felt good to think of her face if she ever found out.

Going to the movies with Alex always proved…interesting. Normally, we’d watch whatever horror movie had just come out. Alex would buy the popcorn and soda and I would buy all the junk food. We’d talk until the movie started and then we’d huddle together. I’d squeeze him whenever I get scared (or when I pretended to be scared) and he’d just smile and hug me in response. It felt nice to be snuggled against his warmth, and he didn’t mind sharing it one bit.

“Did Alex go on his date?” Tiffany asked as I walked into the room. She was flipping through channels trying to find something to watch.

“Yeah, he just left,” I responded. “Want to watch chick flicks?”

Tiffany grinned and stood up. “I’ll get the popcorn and soda.”

I laughed a little and stood up before walking over to the DVD stand. It had almost every single type of movie you could think of from fantasy to horror to comedy to tragedy. Most of the movies had belonged to Alex’s dad and they kept them in the same spot they were left in. Biting my lip slightly, I pick out Mean Girls and pop it into the DVD player. Tiffany came into the room and placed the snacks on the floor for easy access. I walked over to the couch and sat on it, snuggling with Tiffany as she leaned against me. I wrapped us both in the blanket that was on the side of the couch and pressed the play button on the remote.

My mom decided after Eric that she didn’t want to have any more kids, and therefore, no little sister I could use to play dress-up in. So, I obviously had to improvise. Tiffany didn’t mind one bit and Alex thought the action itself was cute. Besides, Tiffany is my little sister in everything but blood. She looked a lot like her dad with her dark, curly brown hair and bright green eyes. I still remember when she was eleven and told Alex about her first crush. Alex totally flipped out and threatened to bully the other kid around. After that, she decided it was best to tell her older brother about crushes with me in the vicinity. He always stayed calmer whenever I was around and would talk with me about what we should do. Kind of like—dare I say it?—a married couple. Or maybe like the older siblings we were.

The next thing I knew, Alex was shaking me awake. Funny, I didn’t even realize I had fallen asleep. I groggily sat up and looked around. Either Tiffany got up and went to bed or Alex had to take her there. I turned around and looked at the alarm clock; 10:17 p.m. Way too early to go to sleep on a Friday night.

“How’d your date go?” I asked quietly, yawning slightly.

“Absolutely horrible,” Alex replied with a grimace. “Jessica kept trying to feel me up while we were eating and during the movie, she kept clinging to me. It was a nightmare.”

“Oh, that’s too bad.” Haha, too bad for you, slut!

“Don’t sound too sorry, Ethan,” Alex teased, grinning at me. I could feel my face take on a red hue.

“I was—I mean—”

“Relax,” Alex interrupted me, laughing. “I was kidding.”

“Oh.” It was silent for a couple of minutes.

“Say, Ethan, can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” I replied, shrugging my shoulders and sipping at some flat soda. “What is it?”

“How did you know you were gay?”

I choked and spat out my drink, coughing furiously. Alex quickly patted me on the back, his worried brown eyes on my body. “W-what? Why do you wanna know that?” I squeaked out, rubbing my chest slightly.

“Just curious. I mean, did you always know you liked boys or did you find out much later?”

Alex seemed genuinely interested and I sighed. “I think I might have always like boys but only began to notice it after I hit puberty.”