parking lot and a dumpster. I’m not allowed to paint it, but the landlord never said anything about draping it in fabric.”
“I’d be happy to help you decorate.” I wanted to do a fist pump when I realized I’d just made plans to see him again after this weekend. He licked his spoon, and then he said, “So, tell me about your job. It must be so exciting to be a Hollywood makeup artist.”
“It’s pretty great, but it’s not the steadiest job in the world. To make ends meet, I do makeup for several drag queens who perform around Los Angeles, which is a lot of fun. But neither of those are my dream job.”
“What is?”
I pulled my phone from the pocket of my jeans and accessed my photos, and then I turned the screen to face him and said, “This is.”
Gabriel murmured, “Oh wow,” and put down his spoon before taking my phone with both hands.
On the screen was a selfie of me wearing bluish green makeup and prosthetic pieces that looked like scales and gills. “I started out trying for a merman, but I overshot and ended up with more of a swamp creature,” I said with a self-conscious grin. “If you flip through that album, you’ll see some other things I’ve done. I’ve been trying to build up my portfolio, so I can get a job doing special effects makeup.”
As he scrolled through the photos, he told me, “These are incredible, Riley. How’d you learn to do this?”
“I watched a few videos online, but mostly I taught myself through a lot of trial and error.”
“Isn’t it hard to make yourself up?”
“It’s not ideal. These transformations take hours though, so it’s hard to find people who are willing to sit still that long.”
He handed my phone back to me and said, “I’d be happy to let you make me over.”
“Wow, really?” When he nodded, I exclaimed, “That would be amazing! I have a bunch of ideas for a series of fae characters that are really gorgeous and otherworldly, and you’d be the perfect model.”
He seemed unsure of himself as he asked, “Do you think you might want costumes to go with your makeup? I like to sew, and I’m pretty good at it. But you don’t have to say yes or anything. It was just an idea.”
“I’d love that! It would be so much fun to work together and come up with ideas.”
Gabriel smiled at me and said, “It makes me happy to see you like this. I always hoped you’d come out of rehab with a new lease on life, and it’s so great that you found something you’re passionate about.”
“It’s all because of you.”
He shook his head. “All I did was put you on a bus.”
“You did a hell of a lot more than that.”
“But you had to do the hard work of getting through rehab and then keeping yourself on track, which you’ve obviously done.”
I told him, “You’ve done the same thing.”
He glanced at me, and then he turned his gaze to the bedspread and asked, “How many times did you have to go through rehab?”
“Just that one time. How about you?”
“It took three attempts at rehab, an overdose that landed me in the hospital, and years of counseling and support groups to finally get to this point. I haven’t used for almost two years now, but I don’t fully trust myself. I don’t know if I ever will.”
I said, “You’re doing great, and I’m proud of you.”
“Thank you. I need to hear that sometimes.” He still wasn’t looking at me.
“Anytime you need someone to talk to, I want you to know I’m here for you. It’s not like I have profound words of wisdom or anything, but I understand what you’ve been through and I’m a pretty good listener.”
“I appreciate that.” Gabriel hesitated for a few moments, and then he moved around to my side of the bed and leaned against me. When I put my arm around him, he rested his head on my shoulder.
I said quietly, “I’m also here whenever you need this.”
After a pause, he murmured, “It’s funny, you look so different, but your voice is exactly the same as it was all those years ago.”
“Is it?”
He nodded. “It’s also amazing how familiar this feels. We must have held each other like this a hundred times back then.”
“Except our positions were reversed. You were always the one holding me.” It was different too because it used to happen through a haze