Tears Of Joy (Paul)

[Paul Wilkerson]

Mychal answered Paul’s unanswered question. He was going to tell Mychal about the relationship he has with his sister, but Mychal spoke.

Paul listened to Mychal speak about war, and violence, and evil, and humans. Mychal surprised Paul. It was like Mychal had become another person. Paul had just met this boy a few minutes ago, so Paul didn’t know a whole lot about Mychal. Paul was attracted to the crying anime nerd, and now Mychal was dark and intimidating. Paul felt uneasy about being with Mychal, but at the same time he was kind of interested in him. How did talking about siblings become talking about war? It baffled Paul.

The young teen watched his newfound friend beginning to pulsate a yellow glow. Was this glowing part of Mychal’s power? Did his emotions have some control over his powers? Mychal was more than a pretty face he was a mystery. As Mychal continued the brighter his glow got. Paul wasn’t sure what to do. Should he say something and try to calm Mychal down? Should he just stay quiet and let Mychal do whatever he needed to do to calm himself down?

Paul could feel Mychal’s emotions. Did Paul upset Mychal? Or was this just Mychal being Mychal? Was this some side effect from his powers? Paul started feeling guilty. Guilty about what, Paul didn’t know. His chest got tight. He wanted to make Mychal feel better.

He should say something. Paul should really say something to Mychal. Paul opened and closed his mouth. He didn’t know what to say. Should he answer Mychal’s questions? Or were they rhetorical questions? Paul tried again, but this time, Mychal started laughing. Paul closed his mouth and scrunched his eyebrows together in confusion. Mychal was a very good example of ‘don’t judge a book by its cover.’ Although Paul only knew Mychal for a short amount of time. Mychal apologized for going all crazy on him.

He nodded his head. “I’m sorry, if I upset you.” Paul said in a quiet voice. “Are you okay?” He was freaked out about Mychal’s out burst. Paul knew that people had more than one side of them. People tend to show only one or two. Some sides were really hard to see, other sides were easy. Paul knew that he had more than just one side of him, even though he doesn’t show them all. But could this mean that Mychal trusted Paul? Is that why he showed Paul a dark side of himself?

[Mychal Doherty]

He's apologizing? He thought with an arched eyebrow after Paul said he was sorry and asked if he'd upset Mychal. Why in God's name would he think it was his fault that I'd become unstable? He asked himself. With his eyebrow still arched he looked at Paul studying him more closely, "You really are an interesting one. Most would have called me crazy, and probably much worse than that, and then left." 

So why isn't he doing the same? There's no doubt in my mind that I'd freaked him out, it's written all over his face. So, why?


Paul then asked him if he was okay. "Am I okay?" He re-asked Paul's question as he looked away again folding his arms over each other on his knees, still sitting forward. He blinked a few times mulling the question over in his mind trying to think how to best answer. "You know, a lot of people have asked me that question over the years. People I care about, love, and even the people I hate. I always give them the answer they want to hear, rather than the one they need to hear. The answer they want to hear is, yes," Mychal said raising and lowering his eyebrows and chuckling, "But the truth is...no." He said, chuckled and shook his head, "Not even close."


"I suppose you're wondering how I came to the topic of war after a simple question about siblings. Most would think they have no relation whatsoever. And really, they don't. The only way I came to that topic was because, I made the mistake of thinking about my past, and just how twisted and cruel I used to be. It brought up latent memories, memories I do my very best to repress. Because of those memories and repressed emotions, I try to never dwell on the darker part of my past. I was a very different person back then. If I'm not careful, if I don't monitor my emotional state, those feelings and behaviors make their way to the surface, and change me." He turned his eyes to Paul, "Change me like you had just seen. But sometimes it can be worse. I was terrified," His gaze lowered, "That I wouldn't be able to stop before I got worse. I have no idea how that happened. How I stopped." His eyes were shifting back and forth as if searching for something. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes and exhaled steadying himself. He opened his eyes again, looking at Paul, "However it happened, I'm thankful. It stopped me before I could really turn into my old self again." His gaze had drifted off again as he finished.

He really liked Paul, and didn't want to see anything bad happen to him. He closed his eyes again, shaking his head and chuckled saying, "God I sound like a fucking soap opera." His eyes widened at his comment, he blinked a couple times, glanced back at Paul, and with a flustered voice said, "Excuse my language, sorry." He bowed his head a little, ashamed at his vocabulary, "I'm trying to change that too." He said with a grin and a little chuckle, "I'm trying to be much less vulgar with my words. It's a bad habit I picked up from my friends." Mychal said with a look very similar to a scolded child, and chewing on his bottom lip. "Mother would've slapped the hell out of me if she'd heard that." He slapped his forehead at the slip-up again, then said, "Dammit." With a frustrated look and gesture to the ceiling he said, "Son-of-a-bitch!" He was becoming more comical with his increasing frustration at his lack of edit over his vocabulary, gesturing even more wildly and saying, "God-d..." He stopped himself before he could continue the last expletive with a growling sound, and shutting his lips. His eyes were narrowed, but there was no real anger in them at all. He took a breath in through his nose, brought his hands up to his chest in a gesture of prayer, looking at the ceiling. He cocked his head a little and bowed his head forward some, still keeping his lips shut. Sorry about that one.


Lowering his hands, he leaned back in his seat laying his arm on the armrest, and thrumming his fingers on it. He looked over to Paul, took a breath and then exhaled, opening his lips. He was trying to keep his face serious, but it quickly became clear to him that it was inevitable. He started laughing, shaking his head, and said a midst the laughing, "Can we just try and forget about the last few seconds, and my bad language?" He figured he really did like the boy if he'd become comfortable enough to become lax on the filter with his language.    

[Paul Wilkerson]

Paul shifted in his seat. Paul like the compliment about him being interesting. He gave a small smile to Mychal. Paul’s smile disappeared a little but then reappeared when Mychal answer the question. It saddened Paul that Mychal said he wasn’t okay. But Paul felt he good that Mychal could speak the truth to Paul.

Paul had his mother, father, and older sister growing up. He had a roof over his head, food in his stomach, and cloths on his body. His family was financially well. Both his parents had jobs. He was able to go to school to get an education. He was able to still live at home while attending Hammel. All things Paul took for granted. Paul most defiantly will be grateful for having a good childhood.

Paul laughed at the soap opera comment. “It’s okay. It keeps things interesting.” Hopefully Mychal won’t take Paul’s comment the wrong way. Paul laughed harder and harder as Mychal tried to stop cussing. Paul put his hands on his stomach. His stomach and cheeks hurt from laughing so hard.

It took a good moment or two before Paul had regain control. Paul wiped the tears that had formed in the corners of his eyes. He would normally would never let anyone see his lavender tears. But Mychal had shared a great deal of information about himself to Paul. Paul looked at Mychal wondering what the other boy thought about the color of his tears.

“Start over? Do you want me to leave and come back to find a crying hot guy again?” Paul’s hand covered Paul’s mouth quick. His eyes were wide staring at Mychal. The teen could feel his cheeks heating up, as they turned red. Did he just say what he thought he said? Paul couldn’t believe that he had just admitted he thought that Mychal was hot. He shifted his eyes to the ground. He mentally slapped himself over and over. What the hell, Paul? Why did you say that? Stupid, stupid, stupid.

[Mychal Doherty]

While Mychal was trying to calm down from his laughing he noticed the unique color of Paul's tears. They're lavender? He thought. He remembered him saying something about looking like an Oompa Loompa when he would sweat, so he wasn't really all that surprised at the color of the tears. He just hadn't known they would be so beautiful. While he was catching his breath he watched as Paul almost hastily wiped the tears off his face. It would appear that he was still reluctant for Mychal to see his power; afraid of being judged, even though Mychal would never do that.

And then he made the comment. Now, had he not reacted so dramatically to his little slip-up, Mychal might have thought he was just joking. His face flushed, his eyes widened, and he immediately bowed his head, already seeming ashamed at his forwardness. A mischievous grin spread across his face, his eyes danced and his ears even lifted a little with the smile, "Oh really? So you think I'm hot huh?" He said, still grinning and leaned forward a little towards Paul. Mychal honestly wasn't really all that surprised to find out he was gay, it was kind of obvious to him. Of course he didn't really want to say that, in case Paul was the type to be offended by that. You never really could tell at first, just how sensitive some people could be to some subjects.


He relaxed in his spot again, a permanent smile now on his face, cocked his head a little to the side and said, "You don't have to be ashamed of anything. I mean, it's not like I'm going to judge you or anything. After all, I think it'd be highly ironic seeing as I'm gay as well." He wondered how Paul would take that information. It was always a toss-up with others on their reactions to hearing about him being gay. Some found it obvious, while others were completely caught off guard.


Deciding he'd worry about that later, he let his instincts guide him, not really thinking about any of his actions beforehand. He pulled himself across the couch situating himself right next to Paul. He leaned forward, placed his fingers under his chin and raised his head. He kept his fingers under Paul's chin keeping his head lifted. For a few seconds he just looked at him, his eyes soft and a warm smile on his face. Then he said, "I could never judge you. You need to know that." He gave a crooked smile, his eyes bright as he continued. He moved his hand from Paul's chin and said, "You also need to know, that I find you very cute."


When he finished, he leaned sideways against the back of the couch, laying his arm across the top of the back, his fingers almost touching Paul's shoulder. The shift in Mychal's demeanor was almost palpable, he got like this whenever he really liked someone and he was around them, especially when he no longer cared about monitoring his actions. He would always have a crooked grin on his face, his eyes would always shine with a mischievous light, and his actions would become playful, but also like those of a trickster. He couldn't help it.

[Paul Wilkerson]

Paul stared at the floor. Mychal didn’t sound like he was uncomfortable by Paul’s little slip up. If anything Paul thought that Mychal was amused by it. If Paul had played it cool, maybe he could of made it sound like a joke. But his strong reaction to what he had said, there was no way Paul could now try and pull it off as a joke.

Mychal was gay as well. Wait, Mychal was gay? Paul looked to the boy on the other side of the couch. Maybe Paul over reacted. His eyes searched floor for something just to stare at. This was the first time Paul had admitted he was gay. No one knew. His parents didn’t know or his sister. He didn’t tell his two childhood best friends. The only one who knew was Paul’s diary that he “didn’t” have. Now Paul had told Mychal. Maybe Paul subconsciously did it on purpose. Or it was just simply a slip of the tongue. Paul wasn’t sure.

The next thing Paul knew was Mychal’s warm hand lifting his chin up. Paul’s eyes were locked onto Mychal’s eyes. The young teen was in an entranced. Mychal was glowing again, or was that just Paul’s imagination? His heart felt like it was going to explode. A good explosion because all his emotions were all jumbled up.

Paul didn’t want the moment to end. But it did when Mychal pulled his hand away. It saddened the teen a little bit when Mychal’s warmth left. In Paul’s mind the moment was lasted for an eternity. In reality the moment was just a few seconds. He was drunk off of Mychal’s attention.

Cute. Very cute. Mychal thought Paul was cute. Paul only had a secret crush on a guy before, but this with Mychal was way better. The other boy didn’t poke fun at Paul about his power. Paul had showed Mychal the color of his spit, told him that Paul looked like an oompa loompa after gym, he saw the color of his tears, and Mychal was interested in Paul.

Paul smiled at Mychal. Maybe he had shot with him.

[Mychal Doherty]

Yes, indeed, Mychal found Paul to be very cute. And that feeling only increased with the adorable smile he gave Mychal. He gave a smile back to Paul, glad to see that he hadn't scared him off with any of his actions yet. He could actually see himself with Paul, and more than just short term too. Paul was attractive, cute, and innocent. More than that, Mychal had already began to feel protective of the boy. Not in a possessive manner, of course, but more along the lines of, he didn't want to see anything bad happen to him.

"So, am I supposed to take it from your reaction that you aren't really accustomed to speaking frankly about your sexuality? Does your family even know?" It was clear to Mychal that Paul had either only told a select few about him being gay, if any. And though he might think that no one knew, if they had any insight at all then they would definitely know. Especially when it came to family. Even the most masculine gay man in the world could be found out if the person had enough insight to do so. And when it came to family, it became even harder to hide it.

"What is your family like anyways? Would they be accepting if you told them?" He asked looking at Paul. "Whatever they're like, I'd be willing to bet that you'd have it a little easier than I did." He closed his eyes, smiling, and laughed at the memories.

When it came to his own family, they were definitely up there on the insightful list. He personally had only a few feminine habits, and he was very good at hiding them. However, as the saying goes, there's always someone better. Because of how he'd grown up, and the family that he'd had, it had become necessary very early on for him to learn how to act; to hide his emotions and thoughts so as not to incur the wrath or unwanted attention of his extremely prejudiced family. Ninety-five percent of his family were actually very good and kindhearted people, but they did have their fair share of flaws. Mainly stemming from a heavily, "Old School" religious background.

Unfortunately for both him, and his family, he was a very quick study. "You could say that I have a bit of an unconventional background. But I won't boor you with those details just yet." Leaning forward a little towards Paul, a grin on his face, Mychal said, "What I will do though, is ask you out to dinner tomorrow night." He leaned forward a little more, his eyes mischievous, "So what do you say Paul? It'll be my treat. You can pick any restaurant you want, regardless of price."

He brought his hand up and placed his right index finger on Paul's lips, "And before you think it, no, I'm not flaunting my money. Yes, I do have money, but I'm not trying to show off. I just like to take my dates to nice places is all." Keeping his finger on Paul's lips he leaned even closer until his face was only a few inches away from Paul's, then said in a playful voice and grinning, "So what do you say?" 

After a couple seconds he dropped his finger and then leaned back away from Paul, and rested against the back of the couch again. His eyes were almost smoldering as he grinned. He loved this feeling he got whenever he was around someone he liked. He also loved seeing the reactions on the faces of those who were on the receiving end of his actions when he was like this. Apparently he could have an interesting effect on some people.

[Paul Wilkerson]

Paul shook his head. “My parents would shocked at first but accepting. Ashlee would pick on me, but that’s what sisters do.” It wasn’t that Paul was ashamed or embarrassed about his orientation. His parents were happily married. His sister has gone through boyfriends like they were handbags. His two childhood best friends were straight. His first crush was straight. It just never came up. Paul was more shocked at himself for admitting that he thought Mychal was hot. It was Paul’s first time admitting something like that. “You’re the first the person to know.” Paul studied Mychal for his reaction.

Paul was a little taken back at Mychal’s request about dinner. He didn’t see it coming at all. He never had been asked out to dinner before. Paul had met Mychal who was crying over anime, which now was long forgotten. The two talked a little bit about anime and then the whole conversation to a turn. The boys shared information that was never shared before. Then a slip of Paul’s tongue and Mychal said he thought Paul was cute. And now Paul was being asked out on a date for dinner tomorrow night. There was something there between the two boys.

For the second time that day Paul felt his cheeks heat up from a blush, when Mychal put his finger on Paul’s lips and leaned in close. He did his best to fight the urge to smile against Mychal’s finger. The corners of his mouth curled up just a smidge. Paul was pretty sure this time he was going to explode. Mychal either liked to touch, or he liked to make Paul’s emotions explode. Either way Paul didn’t mind, he was enjoying the attention.

Mychal wanted Paul to pick where they would go. Paul was a local. He grew up in Pilot Ridge. He knew all the street names. Where all the stores where located. He knew where all the best places were to hang out. He knew all the little hidden short cuts. He knew which store sold the best ice cream. Which pizza parlor was the best. The only thing Paul had to look up was what movies were playing and what time. But in that simple short moment, Paul’s mind went blank.

His mouth hung open slightly as he was trying to recall the map of Pilot Ridge that was embedded in his mind. Trying to think of a good place to go on a date. “Let me think,” he leaned back into the sofa. It was a good moment or two before Paul smiled. “How do you feel about Italian? There’s a restaurant on Oak Street.” He watched Mychal’s playful, flirty eyes.

Paul’s face changed when a question popped into his head. “Wait,” he shifted so he was sitting backwards on the sofa facing Mychal. “You won’t be in trouble for leaving campus, right?” Since Paul lived at home, he didn’t know the rules about living on campus. And he most certainly did not want to get Mychal into trouble on a first date. That would not be a good date.

[Mychal Doherty]

Mychal wondered if his face was going to eventually start hurting from smiling so much recently. But he couldn't help it, everything about Paul made him smile. Yes, he had literally just met him, but somehow he had already found several things about the boy that he loved. But most importantly, Paul had seen him unstable, fragile, and volatile; however, somehow even after those things Paul hadn't left. He was still here.

So he was the first one for Paul to be truthful with, eh? Well, at least he seemed fairly certain of his family's reaction for whenever they did find out. It was good; he was glad that Paul wouldn't have to go through what Mychal had experienced during his, "Coming Out" period. It was nothing like what people typically expected. No grandeur, no dramatic speeches, no extremely emotional heartfelt moments. On the flip side, there was no hatred, at least with most of his family, no spite, no violence. In fact, the best way to describe that period of time for him would be: Chess. That's what it was like for him, one giant game of chess, him against his whole family. At the end of it, the winner would have their view held above all the others, their beliefs heard and respected.


It wasn't easy. In fact, the primary emotion he remembered from his childhood was exhaustion. However, it was worth it. He had gained some valuable skills from his childhood, but more than that, he'd had the opportunity to change the hearts and minds of his family. It was true that his family had always been good, kind people. But they had also been extremely judgmental and prejudiced. However, over time, he'd been able to reach through to them, change them for the better. And now, they were almost all completely free of any form of judgment.

His smile got bigger as he watched Paul's mind try and work out the answer to a simple question. If this was how he acted from the simplest of a touch, he couldn't wait to see how he reacted when Mychal really cranked up the flirting. "Italian's good." He said with a smile, when Paul's brain finally started working again.

Mychal watched with interest as a thought made itself apparent to Paul. It seemed that it was pretty important. However, when Paul voiced the concern, Mychal smiled again and said, "We don't have to worry about that. Tomorrow's the weekend, and students are allowed to be away from the campus so long as they have a parent or guardian with them. Also, the students have to make sure that they are back within the boundaries of the campus by ten p.m., if I remember correctly."

He thought about what he'd just said the moment he finished the last word, eyes looking off to the side. "Now that I think about it though. I suppose that could pose somewhat of a problem for us." He had his hand up to the bottom of his chin, his fingers barely scratching the bottom of it as he spoke. When he stopped, he held his hand there as he turned to look at Paul, continuing on, "Unless, that is, you'd be willing to talk to your family tomorrow? Tell them about everything, get them to be our chauffeurs, or whatever.


"However, I do realize what it is that I'm asking of you. And if you really don't want to do that, it's fine. I'm sure we could find something fun to do around here. I just assumed, after what you'd told me, that you wouldn't have too many reserves about telling them now." If he had been paying attention, he would have realized that he was approaching a sensitive subject, and been a little more tactful. However, as it was, the best he could really hope for, was to salvage the situation, "I could even come with you, if you'd want. Meet your family, let them get to know me. That way you could have someone to lean on if you needed. Also, I could take some of the attention off of you." Mychal said, and hoped that he had navigated that well enough; kept Paul from wanting to bail after the suggestion that would normally terrify most people that still weren't public with the more intricate details about their lives.

[Paul Wilkerson]

Well crap. Their plans hit a bump in the road. “No,” his voice was sharp. He didn’t mean to sound like he was snapping at Mychal. Paul stared at the back of the sofa. “I-I-I-” Paul shook his head ‘no.’ He knew what he was saying was going to ruin their plans for tomorrow night. From the short time he knew Mychal, Paul knew that Mychal would accept his answer. He felt really bad. If Paul was going to bring Mychal over to the house as friend, Paul could do that. He wouldn’t have any problems. But as a boyfriend, that was another story. He still didn’t look to Mychal.

Paul had an idea of how his family might react to the news. It would take some time for the family to adjust to Paul’s confession. He wasn’t afraid of facing his family, or was he lying to himself? Mychal knew what he was asking of Paul and did offer to there with Paul to give support, but still. It was a huge step. A step Paul never really gave it any thought. A step that Paul didn’t think he had to face so suddenly. He wasn’t ready to take that step.

Even though Paul haven’t known Mychal for very long, Paul was attracted to him. The two boys had shared information and spoke the truth to each other. Paul felt comfortable around Mychal. He could really be himself around Mychal. Paul never realized he hid himself to his family and most certainly to his friends outside of Hammel.

He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. “Sorry.” A quiet little whisper came from Paul.

[Mychal Doherty]

Well, damn. Though I can't really blame him can I? He thought after watching Paul's reaction to Mychal's suggestion. He couldn't really say that his reaction was all that surprising, but it was sort of a let down to know that their only way of getting out of this school was to now sneak out. Seeing as he couldn't really see Paul as being the type to attempt that, he decided to not even mention it. "It's alright." He said with a warm smile, not hurt in the slightest from Paul's reaction.

"I realize that it was probably too early to suggest something like that." He looked off to the side, a thoughtful look on his face. "So, I guess the question now is, what to do?" He thought for a second, a few different ideas passing through his mind, "You couldn't borrow a car could you?"

[Paul Wilkerson]

“I’m fourteen. Next year I can get my learner’s permit. And then I’ll be three years away from my driver’s license.” Paul rubbed his eyes. It was easy for Paul to leave campus because he lived with his family. Nobody stopped him, unless there was new security staff member, after that it was smooth sailing for him. But it must be harder for Mychal to leave.

Paul had calmed down some. He still felt terrible for wreaking their plans. Paul was so close to a first date and it all blew up in his face. Mychal wasn’t upset at Paul’s answer. They would figure something out. They would still have their first date.

Wait, what? Paul scrunched his brows together as he tried to piece something together. What ever Mychal was planning it wasn’t obvious to Paul. “Why do you want a car?” Paul looked to Mychal with confusion written all over his face.

[Mychal Doherty]

"Well, I figured maybe if you could borrow a car, then I could go with you to your parents and we could use that to go somewhere. But, I think that'll be a little more difficult. So..." He stopped, a contemplative feature on his face, thinking of how best to proceed. After a moment, a thought entered his mind, Well, if it works then it'll make this a whole lot easier. But that's banking on her actually being here.


"So, I have an idea. It's a long shot, but it just might work. I have an aunt who travels all over the country. She's a trainer for Cox Communications, and her job takes her all over the place. I could call her up and ask if she wouldn't mind lending her car to me to use." He suggested. He didn't suggest it before, because he wasn't certain that his aunt would be in their area, and he didn't want to get Paul's hopes up. But now it seemed to be their only option.

"Hold on." He said and then reached in his pocket for his phone. He turned it on, found the name and then pressed send. After a few rings she picked up, "Hey Beth, it's me." He had a derisive look on his face as the woman feigned ignorance, "You know exactly who it is woman." He said grinning and rolled his eyes, "I had a question for you. You wouldn't happen to be anywhere near Vermont right now, or tomorrow would you?" He waited for her response. His eyes growing a little wider he said, "Really? Awesome. So my next question is, you wouldn't be willing to stop by the school I'm at sometime early evening tomorrow would you?"


"Mother didn't tell you? I'm attending Hammel, you know, the school for Meta kids."


"Yes, that one." He was smiling as he talked to his aunt. She was completely thrown for a loop. Apparently his mother hadn't gotten around to telling all of his family about what had happened to him yet. "Yes, I'm a meta human now. I can give you all of the details when you get here tomorrow, promise." He said, chuckling and smiling.

"Well that's simple. I would like to go out on a date tomorrow with a guy here at the school, but we need a car. And seeing as neither of us have one...well technically I have one, but mother said I had to leave it at the house, anyways, I would really appreciate the help." He sat there nodding his head, grinning and rolling his eyes, "Yes, you can meet him. And I promise not to wreck it, scouts honor." He said and held up his fingers, "So what if I'm not a scout? Woman, ugh." He said in mock frustration at his aunt's ramblings.

"You need to be here by six tomorrow. Now, you're sure this won't interfere with anything right?" Mychal asked, not wanting to get in the way of his aunts work, or any plans she had made, "Thank you so much. I love you Beth, you're awesome."


"Oh yeah, way to be humble there." He said and chuckled, "Whatever." Mychal said, rolling his eyes again, "I'll see ya tomorrow evening. You know how to get here right?"


"Okay. Now please, try and not be late. We all know how you are with time. You say you're on the way, and you haven't even left yet."


"Hey, I'm only speaking the truth." He said, laughing and holding his hand up in defense, "You know, I bet you'd be late to your own funeral." Mychal said and looked off to the side with another roll of his eyes. "Alright. I love you too. See ya." He said and then hung up the phone.

"God that woman is truly one-of-a-kind." He said with his eyes closed and shaking his head. Mychal put his phone back in his pocket and then turned to look back at Paul. "So. I guess our problem has been solved for us. The only question now is, are you ready?" And he grinned at Paul.

[Paul Wilkerson]

Paul waited patiently while Mychal made his phone call. Paul had calmed down, but his mind was still racing. He would have to tell his family, or at least his parents, about the secret he had kept for so long. How would one go about that conversation? Paul didn’t even know where to start. But there was no rush. Paul could take his time to figure out how to approach the subject. Maybe he should ask Mychal for some advice.

He chuckled here and there listening to Mychal’s half of the conversation. Most definitely a conversation between family members. He watched Mychal for his reactions of what his aunt was saying.

“Your aunt sounds like a piece of work.” Paul said after Mychal hung up his phone. It looked like nothing was going to get in the way of this first date. Paul nodded his head. “Yeah.”

Paul moved so his back was resting against the arm of the sofa. He crossed his legs in front of him. “Mychal,” Paul looked away from Mychal. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something but then closed it. He looked to Mychal. “Yeah, I’m really excited.” Paul smiled.

It wasn’t want Paul wanted to say. What Paul really wanted to ask was for some advice to tell his family. But it could wait. Paul wanted to get through his first date and then he would think about telling his parents.