Sunday had been a day full of quality time with Jason. We spent the morning playing Fortnite and in the afternoon we went ice skating.

After dropping him off at his mother's, my apartment felt eerily quiet. I'd never been so aware of how alone I really was.

I tried to watch some Netflix but quickly got bored, so I decided to make an early night. It was going to be another long week, and...

My phone buzzed with a message from an unknown number.

[Did you like the story?

What the fuck? Was it him?

[Amir?
[How did you get this number?

Why did I care? He was texting me!

[Aren't you going to answer the question?

My palms started to sweat, what the fuck should I write? I was completely in foreign territory. Should I say that I didn't read it?

[It was well written but a bit short.

Fuck, I was so nervous! I hadn't felt like this in years.

[I'll take that as constructive criticism

Holy, shit! He wrote the story?! Surely, that confirmed my suspicions about him but I needed to know why he thought I would enjoy it.

[You're a musician and an author?

I was dancing around the only real important question but I wanted him to say it.

[Are they mutually exclusive?

Shit! He was still making idle chitchat. Should I just ask? After all, I was the adult, although recently that seemed rather debatable.

"Puer aeternus" was also a concept in Jungian psychology that referred to a man who tried to stay forever young, the so-called Peter Pan syndrome.

Was that my real problem?

Maybe, all Amir wanted was an opinion on his short story and I was inventing an interest in me, as if I too was... young.

[Amir, why did you want me to read your story?

It took a moment for a reply to come.

[Because the main character has a doubt
[Whether his roommate is straight or not
[I have a similar doubt...

Holy fuck! I hadn't been imagining things at all! But how should I move forward? Maybe, I should torture him back for a bit?

[I think Francesca is totally straight, go for it!

[😂😂😂
[You know that's not what I meant, Ethan

My heart was beating fast, why did it almost skip a beat when I read my name? Should I take the risk to tell him the truth and see where this would end up?

[I'm bisexual

I hadn't admitted that to anyone in a long time, so it made me very nervous. Then the little dots stopped moving! He was gone from the conversation! What the actual fuck?! Amir had forced a confession and then disappeared?

Why?!

I tried to rationalize my panic. What could he do with that information? Who would he tell? Why would he even bother?

My phone buzzed.

[I'd really like to have coffee with you again
[But I don't think I can wait a week

Holy shit!