Klaus from The Umbrella Academy. But he’s definitely not Jason. I type out a response, because even though I don’t want to talk to him anymore, I don’t want to leave him hanging after he sent photos of himself.
You’re cute dude
I know he’s going to ask me for pics, which I don’t want to send, so I switch to Safari and google shark fatalities. Apparently there were sixty-seven unprovoked attacks last year.
Worldwide.
That’s not bad.
Jason is waist-deep in the water now, facing out toward the ocean.
I don’t want him to leave.
I stand up and start frantically unbuttoning my shirt. I pull it off and then toss it to the ground. Then I step out of my slacks.
When I’m done, I see that Jason has turned and is watching me. He was probably watching the whole time I was undressing.
Cool. Cool cool cool.
Guarding my crotch so it’s at least kind of hidden from his view, I jog down to the water. I step in, and, damn, it’s cold.
“It’s nice once you’re in!” he calls.
“It better be!”
He laughs and then scoops up some water and runs it through his hair. It makes it dark and spiky. The waves are really gentle here. Cursing him, I walk into the water until I reach him. Our bodies, up to our waists, are submerged. The water laps gently against me. I adjust and find he was right. It is nice. It’s just so warm out that it’s a shock to the system. It’s not even cold.
Jason watches me for a second. He’s dripping wet.
“Hey, shark bait,” he says.
And there we go. Spell broken.
I cross my arms. “Don’t call me that.”
“But that’s what you are! I bet they can already smell you and are on their way as we speak.”
“Seriously, stop! I’m trying so hard not to think about it, you have no idea.”
He starts humming the Jaws theme music.
“Stop!” I say, and I splash him.
He laughs. I laugh, too.
But then it settles. And I realize that I’m here.
But surely he’s not gay, too. I mean, he could be. But for some reason I don’t think that’s what’s going on. I guess because he’s so attractive, I feel that, even if he is gay, I wouldn’t be the kind of guy he’d be into.
I think he just wants to be friends with me. Which I’m so down for.
I don’t need to make out with him or anything to have a good time. I really like it here, doing just this. I mean, I’m not totally over the fear of sharks. It’s constantly running underneath everything. But other stuff has the focus. Like how the moon is out, and I can see a few stars.
Plus, behind us, the city lights.
“This is nice,” he says. “I like hanging out with you. It just feels really easy, you know? Like we don’t need to talk just for the sake of it.”
“Totally.”
“I think that’s a sign that we could be good friends. That we just, like, work.”
“I think so, too.”
He lies back so he’s looking up at the stars. I do the same.
Because of pollution, I can’t see many. But it’s as good as it ever is here. I remember, once, Dad, Luke, and I went on a camping trip to Yosemite, because Dad loves it there. The stars there were next level.
Anyway.
I really don’t want to think about Dad right now.
I feel like I’m in the middle of another magical night, doing something I never thought I’d do.
And it’s all because of Jason.
* * *
We swim for a while and then walk back up the beach, toward the car, with towels wrapped around our waists. We collect our shoes, and then Jason goes up to the public shower and turns it on. He gestures to me, but I shake my head, so he steps under the spray.
He closes his eyes and dips his head under. His hair gets pressed flat, and water runs down his chest. For someone who games so much, he’s clearly found a way to stay in great shape.
Because damn.
I catch myself staring, and I look away. I know this is just a friends thing, but I can’t help myself.
He’s the first person I’ve ever talked to who seems to like all the same stuff that I do. Our interests line up really well. Mostly we talked about games, because it’s clearly the thing he likes most in the world. He plays big franchises like World of Warcraft, Pokémon, and Minecraft, but also likes indie games like