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

When the phone rang the second time Alexi feared Eli wasn’t going to pick up. The third ring cut out halfway through, replaced a split second later by Eli’s voice. “Hey there!” he said. “How are you doing?”


“I’m…” Alexi contemplated how honest they wanted to be right off the bat. They had thought plenty about what they were going to say in the main part of the conversation, and a few ways it could end, but somehow it never occurred to them that it had to start somewhere. “I’m alive,” they said. “How are you?”


“Alive too, as far as I know.” Eli chuckled. Even with the slight distortion over the phone, the sound somehow put Alexi at ease. “Was there something you wanted to talk about?”


“Yeah. Um…I have a lot to say, actually, and I might not say all of it now, but there’s some important stuff I need to get out.”


Pause. “Okay.” Eli’s tone was wary, yet inquisitive.


Chapter 34