Tourist season at Lake Wallenpaupack means a break in the monotony of Alexi’s life. They’ve been secretly advertising the ice cream parlor they work at through the Foodspotting app, hoping that will bring even more customers. One such customer is Eli, a recent addition to the area with a bright and open disposition that Alexi is drawn to immediately. And since Eli is demisexual, Alexi welcomes him into their friend group of other queer twenty-somethings.<br><br>The more Alexi gets to know Eli, the more smitten they are. If only they didn’t have crippling self-esteem issues, problems at home with their dad, and enough emotional baggage to fill a freight train. They’re desperate to get out of that rut so they can have space in their heart for someone like Eli. After years of playing a passive role, making the first steps towards change might prove too much for them.

#IceCreamSundae

Alexi said what they wanted to say over and over in their head. It was three simple words but each of them hurt. And what words came after them would rely entirely on their dad’s reaction. He might be hurt too, or angry, or worse he would merely shrug them off. Pat had left Alexi with some advice though; better to know what mistakes you’ve made so you can fix them than to sit in a corner terrified of the ones you could make. The chains holding Alexi down had to be broken link by link. They had forged most of them themself, and they definitely couldn’t depend on their dad to break any on his own.


Chapter 27