Normal Miguel by Erik Orrantia

Author:Erik Orrantia [Orrantia, Erik]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, gay latinos, teachers, heartwarming, mexico, gay romance
ISBN: 9781590212561
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Then Giovani took another step when sleepovers became a common pastime of theirs. They were always at Giovani’s house. Miguel couldn’t imagine inviting him over to his house in the slums, with his mother bitching all night. They would crowd together in Giovani’s single bed. Before too long, Giovani wouldn’t resist any more and he’d begin his nightly ritual. Then one night he said, “You want to touch it?”

Miguel never responded with words but his enthusiasm said enough.

Before much longer, he went a step further: “Put your mouth on it. I swear I won’t tell anyone.”

To anyone else, it might have been normal adolescent sexual exploration. For Miguel, it was his first true love.

He took a chance for the first time one night in the darkness of the bedroom, in the heat of the sheets. “I want to kiss you,” he said.

“Are you serious? That’s gross,” came Giovani’s reply.

“No, I mean, I’ve never kissed anyone before. It’s just to try it,” he said.

“Well, I guess just to practice, then.”

After nine months, they had tried it all and had practiced and practiced and practiced. They found hiding places during the daytime on neighborhood playgrounds and in restaurant bathrooms. They found reasons to be together every night. They drew the suspicion of their parents, who would surprise them with mid-evening door openings and third-degree interrogations. There was no stopping them. They fought due to teenage jealousy and fits of anger, they wrote letters from their cross-town classrooms, and they gave small presents to one another—very best friends.

It was a time of bliss for Miguel who, for every milligram of extroversion that Giovani had, matched him with introspection. He saw himself in the mirror, a year older and slightly hairier, matured and practically married to this boy, his best friend. And there was no denying the truth.

“Giovani,” he said one night after a steamy session, “I am more and more certain that I’m gay.”

His partner was still in the darkness. “What? You’re gay?”

Miguel laughed, believed he was joking. What could be more obvious, right?

“Guey,” continued Giovani, “Why didn’t you tell me that? I’m not gay. This is just for fun, I thought. My parents would kill me if they thought I was gay. Besides, I’m Catholic. We don’t believe in that.”

Miguel was perplexed. “Look at us. It’s like we’re boyfriends.”

“Are you kidding? I’m your friend but I am not your boyfriend. I like girls, Miguel. I don’t know what you’re thinking.”

As if a drive belt had broken, the engine stopped cranking. Giovani went his own way. Miguel found himself alone with his illusions. The friendship was over. No more hanging out, no more phone calls and letters, no more passion. Where had he gone wrong?

He returned to the gym where it all started. He went back to that bathroom with the lewd messages, where he ran into prowling men who were more than enchanted to meet him. He discovered the dark alcoves around the outdoor track and the cruising bushes where overhead light bulbs were constantly burst.

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