Long Pass Chronicles 02 - Canning the Center (18 page)

Jamal smacked her head. “Trevor’s a student at SCU, female. Guess what he studies?”

“Bull fighting?” She grinned.

“Smartass. Mathematics.”

She stopped and looked at Trevor. “No kidding? Really? Me too. I mean, I did before I graduated. Now I’m a mathematician for Global Strategies.”

Trevor looked at Jamal. “He told me when we first met. About the math, I mean, not the company.”

Ev started walking up the steps and held open the door for Trevor to walk in. Trev glanced back, still bearing a resemblance to a blue-eyed deer, but he went into the house. Jamal hurried so the guy wouldn’t have to face the horrors of family life on his own.

Too late. When he got inside, his mother already had hold of both Trevor’s hands. “I’ve been so excited ever since Jamal told me he was bringing a friend home. Just call me Clarissa, dear. And this is John.” She pointed to Jamal’s dad, who sat in his favorite chair but had turned off the TV—the height of formality in their house. “Come and make yourself at home.” She guided him to the couch like he might break or fly away if she let him go.

Once Trev was sitting, she came over and kissed Jamal, giving him a secret smile, then hurried off into the kitchen, saying something about hors d’oeuvres.
What the—?
“Mom, why are you fussing around?”

“Let her be, Jamal.” Ev settled into her corner of the couch, leaving space for Jamal to sit next to Trevor. “She can’t believe there’s someone special enough for you to bring home.”

Okay, so maybe he hadn’t brought too many boyfriends—or girlfriends—home over the years. He hadn’t really thought about what a big deal this might seem like to his mom.

She hustled back in with a plate of what looked like cheese puffs and a bottle of wine.
Wine? Holy mother of crap
. “Mom, can we have root beer?”

She frowned. “Trevor, would you like some lovely Riesling?”

He glanced at Jamal, who nodded. “Tell her.”

“I’m kind of a root beer fanatic too, ma’am.”

Ev rocked back on the couch. “Clearly a match made in heaven.”

His mom laughed, put down the cheese puffs, and offered wine to his dad, who opted for beer.

The door opened, and Will knocked as he walked in. “Hey, I hear there’s a party going on.” Noah followed him. Both of them walked over and kissed Jamal’s mom and shook hands with his dad. They were family. Ev got up and gave them a hug. “How’s my ex-boyfriend?”

“Happily homosexual. How about you, luv?”

“The same.” She laughed.

“Where’s Donna?”

Ev sighed. “Back east for a week.” She wailed the last part and then giggled. “I lost her to her art—temporarily.”

Noah was already gazing at Trevor, and Will turned to him. Noah stuck out a hand. “Hi. I’m Noah. And you’re amazing.”

Trevor stood. “Uh, hello.” He glanced at Jamal, then shook Noah’s hand.

Jamal stood beside him. “This is Trevor.”

Will shook hands next. “I think you’re even more beautiful than Trixie.”

His mom stepped up beside Will. “Who’s Trixie and what do you want to drink?” She held up the bottle still clutched in her hand. “I have wine.”

Will grinned. “I’d like root beer, please.”

She rolled her eyes. “This is such a sophisticated family.”

Noah nodded. “I’ll take some wine, please, Clarissa. And I’ll help you get it. Don’t say a single thing until I get back.”

Will dragged a couple of dining room chairs into the small living room and sat on one. From the other room, a cork popped. Will looked at Trevor. “So you’re a student.”

Noah’s voice yelled, “I hear you. No talking.”

Trevor looked around and finally laughed. He raised his voice. “Yes, I’m a student.”

Noah walked back in with a glass of wine and a root beer that he handed to Will before sitting next to him. Jamal’s mom followed with a tray of drinks and another plate of something that smelled good. She distributed the beverages and passed what looked like pigs in a blanket to Trevor along with a napkin. “Don’t give Trevor the third degree, boys. Who’s Trixie?”

Jamal grabbed the plate and served Trevor, who took a pig, stared at it like it could be the real thing, popped it in his mouth, then slapped a hand over his lips, since apparently the pig was hot.

His mother frowned. “Sorry. I should have warned you.”

Trevor chewed with his eyes watering a little. “No, it’s good. Thank you.”

His father leaned forward in the chair. “How’s painting, boys? School going well?”

Will nodded and took a pig from Jamal. “Yes, thank you. We’re both taking two classes this semester and working at the restaurant. Noah’s going through his blue period.”

Noah kept eyeing Trevor. “More like teal. Like the color of Trevor’s eyes.”

His mom took a bite of a cheese puff. “So who’s Trixie?”

Jamal looked at Trevor, who seemed still. “Want to tell her?”

His face stayed very serious. “Trixie is my drag identity.”

She cocked her head. “Drag?” Light dawned. “Oh my God, you’re a performer. How wonderful. How can I see you? Where do you perform?”

For a second Trevor gazed at Jamal’s mom. Something in that serious face said he didn’t know if she was making fun of him, but then a smile broke through. He believed her. “I perform at a little club called the Cellar. It’s where Jamal and I met.”

Jamal nodded. “He has a gorgeous voice.”

“And everything else is pretty gorgeous too.” Will laughed.

“We introduced them.” Noah beamed proudly.

Jamal huffed. “That’d be just a small exaggeration. They took me there, got me hooked, and left me to figure out how to meet the man on my own.”

His mom clapped her hands. “Tell me, tell me. Did he sweep you off your feet, Trevor?”

“I seem to recall some sweeping.” Trev cocked a smile. “Let’s say he was more than persistent, and I had to meet him or someone was going to have to figure out how to remove all three hundred pounds of him from the club.”

She looked at Big John with a smile.
Cat, meet canary
. “Imagine, our son being that persistent.”

His dad nodded. “With something that doesn’t involve a football.”

“A drag queen mathematician.” Trevor looked up sharply at Ev as she shook her head. “That is the coolest thing I ever heard of.”

Again, Trev seemed to weigh her intention and then nodded when he didn’t find any snark. “Everyone needs a balanced life.” He said it with a totally straight face.

Ev laughed so hard she snorted, and everyone else joined in.

His mom went to the kitchen, and Noah followed. Since he worked in a restaurant, he’d gotten interested in cooking. Of course, Will worked there too and couldn’t boil water, but he mostly did books and managerial things with his business school background. Still, he got up and walked into the kitchen too.

Ev and Trevor fell into a mathematics dialogue so far over Jamal’s head LeBron James couldn’t have reached it. He scooted closer to his dad, who smiled. “You ready for Sunday?”

“Yes, sir. At least for the game.” He glanced at Trev and lowered his voice. “Arondel invited me to come to his house for dinner. He said it was a gathering for, quote, some of his favorite players.”

“That can’t be bad. Isn’t it a good thing that the owner likes you?”

“Yeah, but—” He looked again. Trevor and Ev had graduated to working things out on napkins, so it was serious. “We’ve got sort of a situation. I tried to not go out with Boogaloo’s sister by saying I had a date. I did. With Trev. But they called my bluff and invited me to Hartford’s house and asked me to bring my date.” He lowered his voice even more. “Trevor went as Trixie. Totally convincing, but now Arondel wants me to bring ‘my girlfriend’ again.”

He looked up, and his dad’s mouth was hanging open.

“Bad, huh?”

His dad glanced at Trevor, who was following Ev up the stairs toward her bedroom. She actually lived with her girlfriend but came home a lot, so she kept her room. The two were gesturing wildly and speaking in a language unintelligible to most humans.

Jamal watched them go, then turned back to his dad. “Screwed up?”

“I can’t believe you asked that sweet boy to lie like that.”

“Yeah.” He hung his head. “I don’t know what to do, Dad. I really like Trevor. But if I come out, I’ll probably lose my job.”

“They can’t fire you for sexual orientation.”

“No, but they’ll find some other way to get rid of me, you know that.”

His dad sighed. He did know it. “It’s one thing to lie on your own. That’s bad enough. But when you ask others to lie for you, it’s serious.”

“Yeah, I know. It was a little bit of a lark that first time, but to do it again, and for Arondel, feels strange. I don’t know what to do.”

“Sounds like you’ve backed yourself into a corner.”

Chapter 12

E
V
AND
Trevor came back down the stairs, and his mother called dinner at the same time. His dad gave him a look but got up and moved into the dining room.

Over grilled salmon, mashed potatoes, and spinach, they all chatted and laughed. Trevor seemed to relax more and more. God, it was great to see him like that.

His mom sipped a little of the Riesling. “Do you have family in southern California, Trevor?”

From inches away, Jamal could feel him tense. “My dad’s dead and my mother’s in a hospital with Alzheimer’s.”

“I’m so sorry. Do you have brothers and sisters?”

A frown flitted across his forehead. “One brother. He pays for my mother’s care, but I don’t see him otherwise.”

She frowned back. “Did your father leave money for your schooling?”

“No. I have a full-boat scholarship from the Anvil Foundation.”

Ev stared at Trevor. “I don’t mean to pry, but can’t you teach most of the classes you take?”

Trev gazed at his plate.

Noah voiced the question. “What do you mean?”

“Trevor’s a mathematical genius. He can do proofs I can’t solve, and I have a PhD. I just wondered why he’s taking undergraduate classes.”

“It’s what I could get the scholarship in.”

Her elbows planted beside her plate. “You know there are people who’d hire you now, right?”

Trevor shifted in his seat. “The professors let me tutor the students. I have to have the degrees to teach.”

Ev huffed. “Of course the professors let you help with the classes. You’re twice as smart as they are. Ten times.”

His mom leaped in. “I’ll bet you’ll make a great teacher. Noah, tell us about the painting. What are you working on?”

The focus shifted and Trevor relaxed. He seemed really interested in the guys’ art.

Jamal jumped up to help clear the table. He hauled a pile of plates to the kitchen and started rinsing them in the sink to load the dishwasher. Ev came up beside him with more plates. She spoke softly. “I’m not kidding about Trevor. The guy’s a flat-out genius.”

“I figured he was smart, but I didn’t know.”

“I’m not sure why he’s hiding out, but it seems like that’s what he’s doing.”

“I’m not sure either.” But he had a good idea. Male mathematicians didn’t usually wear dresses.

When they got back to the table for the last of the dishes, Jamal’s mom said, “Trevor, feel free to say no, but is there a chance you’d sing something for us?”

Jamal turned around and looked at Trev. How would he react?

Those blue eyes got soft, and he smiled. “Really?”

“We’d love to hear you.”

“Okay.”

Man. Amazing
.

They all moved into the living room, and everyone found a place to sit. Noah chose the floor next to Will’s leg, and he rested his beautiful head in Will’s lap.

His mom stood in the middle of the room. “Hmm. Do you want to sing a cappella? We have an old guitar that belongs to Jamal’s brother.”

Trevor nodded. “I play the guitar.”

Jamal laughed. “You do?”

“Yes.”

Ev asked, “How many instruments do you play, Trevor?”

He shrugged. “Five or six, maybe. Just for fun.”

She glanced at Jamal intently and ran up the stairs for the guitar.

Okay, yes, I get it
. Actually, finding out his boyfriend was a genius was kind of intimidating. If Trevor would even let himself be called Jamal’s boyfriend.

She bounded down and handed Trevor the guitar. He sat on the straight-backed chair Jamal had set out for him and promptly started tuning the thing like he’d played it every day. For a second he rested his hands on the instrument; then they started to move.

“Black is the color of my true love’s hair.”

That voice, so beautiful on the stage, soared like a bird in flight in the small room. Sweet, soprano, lilting, somehow a little smoky and a little pure. Goosebumps tingled up Jamal’s arms.

“His lips are something wondrous fair. He has the nicest eyes and the gentlest hands. I love the ground whereon he stands.”

Nobody moved. Not a sound or a breath, unless they could hear Jamal’s tears dripping off his cheeks.

“I love my love, and well he knows. I love the ground whereon he goes. I’ll count my life as well begun, when he and I shall be as one. Black, black, black, is the color, of my true love’s hair.”