03

"So you mean Star asked you if you have intentions of becoming a father?" Aiden asked with a loud voice.

He just couldn't believe what his friend was telling him because the Henry that he knows would never do such. Having an unprotected sex with her with neve happen, not to talk of him impregnating her. "Yes." Henry answered for the second time.

"What was your reply to her?" Aiden seemed so interested in the topic as they both of them sat in the living room, each of them holding a bottle of beer.

"No of course, I am just twenty one so I can't have a child this early. She should know better than anyone." He responded taking a swing of the beer.

He winced, taking a second swing. "You never get used to this beer." Aiden said, pointing at the beer in his hands and also in Henry's hand.

"And I don't think I can, not anytime soon."

They stayed in silence, everyone in their own thoughts when something crossed Henry's mind and he has been willing to ask Aiden but he couldn't do it over the phone. "Who are you dating?" Henry asked.

"Me? No one really. I don't have my eyes on anyone."

Henry went mute for a while. For a year now, he doesn't understand Aiden. He hasn't been with a girl lately and that made Henry wonder how Aiden gets off or who knows if he doesn't? "What are you Aiden? Because I can't wrap my head around you and your sexual life." Henry complained.

Aiden sighed, sitting well. "I am bisexual Henry, or maybe I think. But all the girls in Oregon don't fantasize me and I don't know where to get any gay guy that will be willing to hook up with me. This is Oregon, a place with no gays." Aiden explained.

Actually, he has been looking for someone to tell that. He is bi and he is ashamed of it because Oregon is not that way, not to even talk of how his father will react when he learns that he likes men too. It will be a disaster. "But that doesn't explain why you should keep it in. I mean there are dating site that you get someone to hook up with." Henry advised.

"Not anyone Henry. It doesn't work that way for me. It has to be someone that I know for years and I am used to it already. Not to even talk of how father will react when he finds out."

"He doesn't own you Aiden and has no say in your sexuality. I am not gay, and I don't think I can be gay but that doesn't make me judge them. They are humans too." Henry said hoping it will help Aiden move forward.

"Bi Henry, Bi." He corrected.

He earned a loud hiss from Henry who threw away the empty can of his beer and stood up to get a new one. "It doesn't make any difference to me if the girls of Oregon can make you go down on them. Now, bring your phone out so that I will set up a dating app for you and you will give it a try." Henry instructed, leaving no room for argument.

Aiden brought out his phone as he was asked and passed it to Henry that was trying to open his new beer. "Okay, tell me I am really seeing well."

"What?" Aiden asked.

When he noticed how Henry was looking at the phone, he knows that Henry is shocked seeing him with an iPhone finally. "An iPhone 14 for you? Really? It is nice." He commented, downloading the dating app from the appstore.

"I know, though I am still getting used to it. I got it earlier today." Aiden revealed.

Henry nodded his head as he continued to type away on the new phone and passed it to Aiden after he was done. "Hopefully, you will get a message and you don't have to worry, you can play safe. I didn't use your real name."

Aiden mumbled an okay before collecting the phone and screamed when he saw what Henry wrote on the description. "What have you done? I told you that I am Bi not gay." Aiden tried, hoping Henry will get it and stop calling him gay.

"It doesn't make.any difference to me, I promise and it won't make to many people so let it go please. I am tired so I will move to the room first." Henry told him and he took up making his way to the room Aiden stays in.

He is never the one to stay in the guest room, no matter what and Aiden is already used to it that he doesn't even complain. "Dumb Henry." Aiden whispered, getting up and he packed away all the cans of beer that littered the room.

——

Aiden's POV

I threw the last trash into the dust bin before dusting off the couch and I moved to the room with my phone in my pocket.

On my way there, I got rid of my shirt and took the other side of the bed as Henry occupied the other side. I brought my phone, going through the dating app. "Am I really gay?" I asked myself as I read the description again and again.

But being Bi doesn't mean that I am gay right? It means I like women and men at the same, which is weird. Someone like my father will consider it an abomination and make sure that I get baptised but I doubt he will ever find out.

I will try the men and see which one I prefer the most and take the right way, hopefully. I dropped the phone by the vanity stand and closed my eyes, hoping that sleep will come right away but my mind kept drifting to the dating app on my phone. "Fuck." I uttered opening the vanity stand and brought out something I have been avoiding.

The red pill looked back at me as I contemplated on taking it. "For the work." And I popped the pill into my mouth, swallowing it hard.

Within or less than six minutes, my eyes lid got heavy and I began to feel sleepy. Drug abuse is another thing that I do and also, stopping my father from finding out.

I slept, hoping tomorrow will be a better day and a better day that I don't have to ever regret.

A voice hoarded me and I was lost. "Wake up." The voice said again, making me groan.

Why can't Henry just let me be? "What do you need?" I asked.

"Just fucking wake up." He screamed and I opened my eyes.

In his hands was the box of the drug I take whenever I can't sleep or I need something to make me high. "What is this Aiden? I thought you have passed this? I thought you moved on."

"I did Henry. I don't know what happened, I swear." I tried to explain but everything I try to say more, the words get hooked in my throat.

"No Aiden, you didn't. From the looks of things, you didn't even stop. Do you really want to die?" He asked. His eyes were now red and the way he speaks, the anger emits from his voice but this is my life, he doesn't even know what I am going through, despite him coming every weekends, he still can't see through me.

I stood up from the bed and far away from him. "You don't stay around here with me Henry. You don't know what I go through every day and night, how I sleep hoping that the next day won't come or any expectation that my father will love me wholeheartedly. You are not the one that confused about their sexuality and you are not the one trying hard to fit into the society. You are not all this Henry, then why do you blame me? Why? I cried out.

There are things i wanted to say but I held them in. Now is not the perfect time to say it and even if I do, there is nothing that he can do to help me about it. "I am not the one Aiden but I swear, I don't see the reason why you want to end your life when you can clearly make it the way you want. You can live how you want and no one will judge you. Even if they do then they are very daft and don't deserved to be called humans." He comforted, coming closer.

He pulled into a warm hug. "You are very nice and good boy the way you are. You don't need any body's validation to be who you are. Know this and accept it, stop hiding." He ended patting my back while I cried heavily unto his skin.

"Be you and you will see how great the world is." He advised moving me to the bed.

I stopped crying, lifted my face from his shoulders and I looked directly into his eyes. "Thank you Henry and I will try, I just hope I can pull it off." I told him wiping my eyes.

"You can Aiden, just like I stopped sleeping around, you will stop and be you." He comforted once more before leaving the room to do whatever he wants to do.

I quickly made the bed, happy that i have him in my life or else, I don't know what will happen to me and how I will be living with a strict father and a mother that can't stand up for her first child, because of the future of the rest of her kids and I don't blame her. I want my siblings to have the best, knowing that both me and my mother go through a lot to make that happen.

I was done with the bed when I moved to the bathroom to take a shower before I will cook breakfast and we will both look for something to do since he will be leaving tomorrow morning.

I stripped out of my pants and turned on the shower, letting the water hit my back. I moaned due to how good it felt on my back. I grabbed my sponge and my shower gel, and began to scrub my body clean.

The water washed it out as I was done and soon, my body was squeaky clean. I switched the shower off then got a clean towel from the handle before wrapping it around my waist.

I stopped in front of the mirror, drying my hair when the door to the bathroom opened and Henry entered, without asking for excuse. "What are you doing here?" I screamed.

"I don't get what am I doing here? I came to use the bathroom and it is not like you are naked, so drop the shy act." He waved me off, opening the toilet seat.

I didn't even stay to see the rest and I ran out of the bathroom, with a working hair dryer in hand. "What is happening to me?"