5 Kisses, 1 Diss
1. Joey - He's eight, tall for his age, and broad-shouldered. Joey is nine, all legs, and a head of white blond hair. They've been best friends for as long as he can remember, which in the mind of a child could be anywhere from a few years to a few weeks. (For the record, it's the former.) It's a rainy Saturday, not unlike most Saturdays that they spend together. The two boys are wrestling, practicing moves inspired by the spandex wearing men on TV. Tristan stumbles as he attempts a throw, and both boys stumble, lips colliding on the way down. The kiss is accidental and completely innocent (even if this has happened before). Joey's parents catch their antics, however. Come Thursday morning, Joey's in a new class. Three weeks later it's a new house on the other side of town.
2. Patrick - There are so many things that could go terribly, horribly wrong. Patrick is a grown man. A tall, muscular, kind and gentle man. A thirty-five year old man. Tristan is only sixteen. Their meetings are always clandestine. Their outward appearance, completely platonic, but Patrick has a way of looking at him, just looking, that makes Tristan's skin flush red ... his heart grow heavy... his pants get uncomfortably tight. It's not until date number five that Tristan dares do more than hold Pat's hand. They're talking, about sports, specifically football, and Patrick is so adamant that his team will will the Super Bowl this year. Tristan watches the older man talk, hands animatedly moving his hands back and forth, but he notices only one thing (as is so often the case with horny teenaged boys) : Patrick's muscles flex deliciously with each and every gesture. Tristan licks his lips. It's their fifth date, and they haven't even kissed, a situation he must fix. Tristan lunges forward, taking Pat's face between his hands, and presses their mouths together, ending one conversation and beginning an entirely new one.
3. Mags - It's taken hours to stabilize her. The doctors say her heart stopped twice and that she could have very nearly died there on that gurney. Tristan clutches her hand like the world's about to explode or implode or just cease to be if he dare let go. He smooths his fingers over the heart monitor clamped to her index finger and lets his breath match the beeping of the machine, of her heart, steady, even. He happens to glance at the clock. Eleven fifty-nine. As the minute passes, he presses a kiss to her forehead. Happy fucking New Year.
4. Lindsay - She always knows just how to cheer him up, bringing over the pint of Ben & Jerry's after he's stumbled through yet another bad date. He tells her about the one with the bad hair, or the bad teeth. Tristan recounts Mr. No Personality and Mr. I'm still mentally fifteen. They're friends, good friends, and he wishes he could love her because he can see it in her eyes that she wouldn't mind bringing him home and calling him her guy and he wouldn't mind the little bit of normalcy. But he doesn't love her, not like that, and they BOTH know this fact. That common sense flies out the window one night in April, after one too many drinks, and one too many rejections. They stumble to her room, mouths crashing together in a way that only drunk and clumsy mouths can. The following morning, he leaves without saying a word. It's a good three months before they ever talk about it.
5. Mateo - The pair had danced around one another, flirting with eyebrows raised from one end of the room to the other in English 1301. It hadn't yet amounted to anything beyond that, however, to Tristan's dismay. So, after he'd been struck with a bad cold that caused him to miss a week's worth of classes, he sought out the other student under the guise of needing notes. Mateo answered his door in little more than a towel. After nearly a semester of flirting, Tristan did the only brave thing he'd ever done up until then. He slipped in the door, letting it click shut, and backed poor Mateo into his desk. Alone at last, Tristan kissed him, hands gently gripping the other's hips as the kiss was eagerly received.
-----------
1. Dawn - In high school Tristan clung tightly to the facade that he was a stud, every girl's dream. For awhile, he was so good at it he had himself convinced (so long as he didn't shower in the locker room while any of the other guys were there). He even had a girl who he pined after, his lady, the leading lady in almost every theatre production, Dawn. He'd never been a big theatre nerd, but had taken everyone's advice and tried ouf for leading role opposite her... and somehow landed it. They were inseperable for those eight weeks prior to the show, and Tristan found they had plenty in common. He just knew he had a chance to be straight with her. After the very last show, well after everyone else had gone home following the afterparty, Tristan helped Dawn clean up soda cans and paper plates. He pauses momentarily and turns to face her. "Hey Dawn? Wanna go out on a date?" "Umm... Tristan? You're gay. So no." His world is crushed. So much for that.
2. Patrick - There are so many things that could go terribly, horribly wrong. Patrick is a grown man. A tall, muscular, kind and gentle man. A thirty-five year old man. Tristan is only sixteen. Their meetings are always clandestine. Their outward appearance, completely platonic, but Patrick has a way of looking at him, just looking, that makes Tristan's skin flush red ... his heart grow heavy... his pants get uncomfortably tight. It's not until date number five that Tristan dares do more than hold Pat's hand. They're talking, about sports, specifically football, and Patrick is so adamant that his team will will the Super Bowl this year. Tristan watches the older man talk, hands animatedly moving his hands back and forth, but he notices only one thing (as is so often the case with horny teenaged boys) : Patrick's muscles flex deliciously with each and every gesture. Tristan licks his lips. It's their fifth date, and they haven't even kissed, a situation he must fix. Tristan lunges forward, taking Pat's face between his hands, and presses their mouths together, ending one conversation and beginning an entirely new one.
3. Mags - It's taken hours to stabilize her. The doctors say her heart stopped twice and that she could have very nearly died there on that gurney. Tristan clutches her hand like the world's about to explode or implode or just cease to be if he dare let go. He smooths his fingers over the heart monitor clamped to her index finger and lets his breath match the beeping of the machine, of her heart, steady, even. He happens to glance at the clock. Eleven fifty-nine. As the minute passes, he presses a kiss to her forehead. Happy fucking New Year.
4. Lindsay - She always knows just how to cheer him up, bringing over the pint of Ben & Jerry's after he's stumbled through yet another bad date. He tells her about the one with the bad hair, or the bad teeth. Tristan recounts Mr. No Personality and Mr. I'm still mentally fifteen. They're friends, good friends, and he wishes he could love her because he can see it in her eyes that she wouldn't mind bringing him home and calling him her guy and he wouldn't mind the little bit of normalcy. But he doesn't love her, not like that, and they BOTH know this fact. That common sense flies out the window one night in April, after one too many drinks, and one too many rejections. They stumble to her room, mouths crashing together in a way that only drunk and clumsy mouths can. The following morning, he leaves without saying a word. It's a good three months before they ever talk about it.
5. Mateo - The pair had danced around one another, flirting with eyebrows raised from one end of the room to the other in English 1301. It hadn't yet amounted to anything beyond that, however, to Tristan's dismay. So, after he'd been struck with a bad cold that caused him to miss a week's worth of classes, he sought out the other student under the guise of needing notes. Mateo answered his door in little more than a towel. After nearly a semester of flirting, Tristan did the only brave thing he'd ever done up until then. He slipped in the door, letting it click shut, and backed poor Mateo into his desk. Alone at last, Tristan kissed him, hands gently gripping the other's hips as the kiss was eagerly received.
-----------
1. Dawn - In high school Tristan clung tightly to the facade that he was a stud, every girl's dream. For awhile, he was so good at it he had himself convinced (so long as he didn't shower in the locker room while any of the other guys were there). He even had a girl who he pined after, his lady, the leading lady in almost every theatre production, Dawn. He'd never been a big theatre nerd, but had taken everyone's advice and tried ouf for leading role opposite her... and somehow landed it. They were inseperable for those eight weeks prior to the show, and Tristan found they had plenty in common. He just knew he had a chance to be straight with her. After the very last show, well after everyone else had gone home following the afterparty, Tristan helped Dawn clean up soda cans and paper plates. He pauses momentarily and turns to face her. "Hey Dawn? Wanna go out on a date?" "Umm... Tristan? You're gay. So no." His world is crushed. So much for that.