The Boy Who Couldn't Fly Straight: A Gay Teen Coming of Age Paranormal Adventure about Witches, Murder, and Gay Teen Love (Book 1, The Broom Closet Stories)

by Jeff Jacobson

  “Yeah, they’re nice,” Charlie said, looking out the window as they drove down block after block of residential streets.

  “What a cool house you live in! Ours, it’s more modern. My mom’s kinda into the chrome-and-glass look, you know?”

  “Uh-huh.” Charlie nodded, having no idea what chrome-and-glass houses looked like. He tried to picture it but could only imagine something like a big Christmas tree ornament.

  “Really cool leather jacket,” Diego said, reaching over and touching the sleeve. “Where’d you get it?”

  Charlie told him a little bit about the shopping trip with his aunt.

  “Why did you move to Seattle?” he asked. “I keep meaning to ask you.”

  Charlie told him the story that he and Randall and Beverly had worked out together. “The school district where we live isn’t that great, and my mom wants me to get a good education. My aunt and uncle knew about Puget Academy, so they said I could come live with them. We decided kind of last minute.”

  “Right on,” said Diego, nodding. He seemed to believe the story.

  “I’d better start looking for parking. They live on this block, but it looks like a lot of cars are here already.”

  Charlie tried to swallow, but his throat was too dry. He didn’t know so many people would be coming to the party. What if he said something stupid and looked like a fool in front of his new friend? What if everybody made him talk about California? What if they made him the center of attention all night, and he couldn’t get away?

  He began to feel nauseous. Maybe they could just keep driving. Maybe he should ask Diego to take him back to Washington Street.

  “Well, we’re here,” Diego said as he pulled on the parking brake and got out of the car.

  The house was made of dark brown brick with a sloped roof and a large grass lawn in front. The houses in this neighborhood didn’t seem as nice as where he lived on Washington, but it was still nicer than what he was used to in California.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Tanner are the hosts tonight. Do you know Kayla and Brandon Tanner at school? He’s a sophomore and his sister is a senior. They’ve been doing this since Kayla was a freshman at P.A.,” Diego said, acting like a tour guide as they walked up the cement walkway to the front door. Charlie could hear music coming from inside.

  “I think the parents get more excited about this party than anyone else does,” whispered Diego on the doorstep as he rang the doorbell.

  “Diego Ramirez, welcome, welcome,” said a barrel-chested man in a button-down shirt with sweat stains on the front. He had a pin on the front of his shirt that read “Proud P.A. Papa. “You just keep getting taller and taller, don’t you? Come in, come in. Who’s your friend?”

  “Hi, Mr. Tanner. I’d like to you to meet Charlie Creevey. He’s a new sophomore, a transfer from California.”

  “Charlie! Ted Tanner. Come in, welcome, welcome,” Mr. Tanner shouted. He wondered if the man was hard of hearing. He took Charlie’s hand in his own and gave it a bone-cracking squeeze. Charlie smiled back at the man, whose face was red. “California! Well, well!”

  The boys stepped into the house. The air was much stuffier than outside. Kids their age were walking up and down the stairs or crowding around a table filled with food.

  “I’ve just been dancing in the living room. Pardon my mess,” Mr. Tanner said, referring to his shirt. “Gingy, Diego Ramirez is here with a new student!”

  A woman with frizzy blonde hair came out of the kitchen wiping her hands on a towel as she walked toward them.

  “Look at you, Diego. I swear you take handsome pills every morning.” She put her arms around him. He hugged her back, laughing as he did.

  She looked at Charlie, and her smile remained, but her face looked surprised. “I don’t think I know you,” she said. “I’m Ginger Tanner.”

  “Hi, Mrs. Tanner,” Charlie said, relieved when she shook his hand instead of hugging him. “I, uh, I’m a new student, just started last week. My aunt and uncle live here in West Seattle and I’m living with them for the school year.”

  “How nice, how nice. Let me take your coats.” She walked them toward the entry closet. “We usually hold this party the first week of school, but Ted had some thing in Spokane, so we couldn’t do it until now. Glad we didn’t miss you,” she said to Charlie.

  Coats were hung, more introductions were made, and the boys were ushered over to the food table. They began filling their plates, while P.A. friends of Diego’s came over to greet him and to meet Charlie.

  Charlie felt himself relaxing. The noise and activities reminded him of the fall festival back at school in California where kids ran amok in the decorated school auditorium and parents staffed booths and craft tables. The Tanners’ party was on a much smaller scale but was crowded enough that Charlie could watch the activities without being the center of attention.

  “I’d like you to meet somebody,” Diego said as he carried his plate over to a room off the kitchen. There were three kids on folding chairs, talking to each other. Diego headed for a small love seat right near them.

  One of the kids, a girl with long blonde hair and a pretty smile, looked up and saw Diego.

  “Honey!” she shouted, and stood up, nearly knocking his plate of food from his hands.

  “Mwa! Mwa!” they said, kissing each other on the cheek.

  Charlie was surprised. Diego hadn’t said anything about having a girlfriend.

  “And you,” said the girl, setting down her glass of soda and walking over to him, “must be Charlie. I’ve already heard so much about you!”

  Diego smiled broadly, and the girl laughed.

  “Charlie, I’d like you to meet Tawny Rose. Tawny, this is Charlie Creevey.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Charlie said, taking her hand.

  The three of them sat down together. The other two kids left, and soon Diego and Tawny were talking about everybody at school. Every so often they would turn to Charlie to say things like, “Wait until you meet her,” and “We have to tell you what happened in chemistry last week.”

  Charlie dug into the nachos, the potato salad, and pieces of summer fruit on his plate. He found it pleasant to be sitting next to the two friends, hearing them talk but not being required to join in. He enjoyed watching some of the other kids come and go from the den where they sat. At one point Mrs. Tanner came in carrying a very large pitcher filled with a cloudy liquid.

  “Coconut juice, anyone? It’s apparently all the rage. Charlie, do they drink it in California?”

  “Um, I dunno,” he said, hoping she wouldn’t single him out with any more questions. He relaxed as she floated out of the room, shouting, “Coconut juice, anyone?”

  “The Tanners,” said Tawny quietly, “do this party every year. And every year Kayla begs them not to. Charlie, if you haven’t met her yet, she’s easy to spot. She’s the girl with the permanent scowl on her face. Everyone else, including Brandon, has fun. I think she’s just embarrassed because she wants her parents to be more hands-off.”

  A few really tall, older-looking boys walked into the room and called Diego’s name. He looked up, started laughing, and ran over to where they stood. Right away they started doing a complex series of handshakes, part mutual and part competitive.

  “So,” Tawny turned toward him, “like I said, Diego has told me a lot about you. How are you adjusting to P.A. so far?”

  “It’s pretty good.” Charlie wondered if she were scrutinizing him. She wouldn’t be jealous of her boyfriend spending time with him, would she?

  “I don’t know if I’ve ever met your aunt and uncle before,” she said, biting into a potato chip.

  “Oh, um, they don’t have any kids, so they haven’t really hung out at P.A. before.

  Silence followed. Charlie realized he should probably ask her a question. It seemed like the polite thing to do.

  “Where do you live?” he said, hoping the question wasn’t too stupid and boring.

  “Not far from he
re. Head south on California, and I’m near the dead end.”

  “Cool. How long have you and Diego been going out?” he asked, the question sliding from his mouth before he had the chance to wonder if it was rude or not.

  CHAPTER 32

  Alliances

  TAWNY, WHO HAD BEEN TAKING a sip of her soda, coughed and spat some of the liquid onto his arm and her plate of food. She coughed several more times, trying to catch her breath.

  “Sorry! Sorry!” she croaked, patting at his arm with her napkin. It struck him as funny too, and they both giggled while they tried to mop up the mess.

  When Tawny finally recovered enough to talk, she looked directly into his eyes.

  “Oh, um, Charlie? We’re not going out. We’re friends. We are definitely not going out.”

  She seemed to be emphasizing her words, looking at him intently. He knew he was missing something, but he wasn’t sure what it was.

  Diego came over and sat down next to them. “Those guys are nuts!” he said, laughing and shaking his head. He obviously hadn’t seen Tawny choke on her drink.

  They fell back into conversation again, talking about more teachers, classes, and school stories that Charlie didn’t know anything about. Tawny didn’t mention Charlie’s dating question, but he found her sneaking glances at him every so often, her eyes guarded.

  “I think I’ll head downstairs to watch the foosball tournament,” she said. “You guys wanna come?”

  “Charlie?” asked Diego.

  “Sure.”

  As they headed downstairs, they could hear kids laughing and shouting. “You cheated! You can’t move the ball like that!”

  The basement was a large carpeted room with board games, a large foosball table, a pool table, and a big-screen TV showing a kung fu movie. Kids were spread out all over the place, talking in groups or playing games.

  “Will you guys shut up?” a girl yelled over her shoulder to the gaggle of students shouting at the foosball game in action. “We’re trying to watch a movie.”

  When the game ended in a loud cheer, Diego asked Charlie if he wanted to be a team. They moved to one side of the table while the winners of the last game got ready on the other.

  The ball dropped and Charlie, who had been playing foosball nearly his entire life at the community center in Clarkston with his buddy Mike, blocked a shot from the forward and then spun the handle of his defense line. The ball flew into the goal before anyone could block it.

  “Dude! You scored! Goal!” Diego shouted, imitating a Spanish-speaking soccer announcer.

  The ball was dropped in again. Charlie took a second shot and scored.

  “No fair!” shouted one of the kids on the other team. “You gotta give us a chance.”

  Soon Diego and Charlie won the game and took on a series of players.

  At one point, Tawny stepped in to play with Charlie. She was just as good as Diego, and they maintained their winning streak.

  “What’s this I hear about champions at my foosball table?” bellowed a voice coming down the stairs about fifteen minutes later.

  Mr. Tanner and a much younger facsimile of himself stepped up to where Diego and Charlie stood.

  “Let’s take ’em, Dad” said Brandon. And with that, a wild game of foosball erupted, father and son on one side of the table, Charlie and Diego on the other. The other kids in the basement gathered around. Charlie remained calm, enjoying the fact that he could keep his focus on the game and not on who was watching him. Maybe parties could actually be fun, he thought to himself as he blocked a shot on the goal.

  In the end, the Tanners emerged the victors.

  “But we’ve never had someone give us such a run for our money,” Mr. Tanner said, patting them both on the back.

  Kids started to head upstairs as Mrs. Tanner announced that it was nearly ten thirty and time to wind things up.

  “It’s a school night, everybody. And besides, we promised your parents we wouldn’t keep you out too late.”

  “Thanks for helping to keep my husband’s ego in check,” Mrs. Tanner said moments later, handing the boys their coats as they stepped out onto the front porch.

  Charlie had been sweating downstairs during the foosball match. The cold night air felt good on his face. He turned around and looked back into the house drinking in the warmth, the new friends, the evening. He was surprised to find that he didn’t want the party to be over.

  “Come on, Charlie. I told your aunt and uncle I’d have you home before eleven,” said Diego.

  They walked behind several other P.A. students leaving the party. Out in the street, car doors opened and closed as the calls of “goodnight” and “see you tomorrow” echoed up and down the street.

  A boy and a girl holding hands near a small red Honda grabbed Charlie by the arm as he walked by their car. He recognized them from Chinese class.

  “Dude, you rock at foosball! Nobody ever goes head-to-head like that against Team Tanner. Wait until we tell Chen Laoshi tomorrow,” the girl said, smiling at Charlie. “I’m Hannah.”

  “Hen hao, hen hao,” said the boy.

  “Xiexie nimen,” Charlie replied, unable to hold back his smile.

  He walked over to Mrs. Ramirez’s BMW, where Diego was talking to Tawny. They looked up at him. Diego was frowning.

  “Night, boys,” Tawny said as she walked to her car. “Really nice finally meeting you, Mr. Creevey.”

  “You too. Uh, see you at school,” he replied, wondering what they had been talking about.

  Charlie climbed in and sat on the soft leather seat. Diego followed, but didn’t start the car.

  “Uh … did you have fun tonight?” he asked, his voice quiet. This wasn’t the vivacious cheerful boy who had just played foosball with him.

  “Yeah, yeah, it was cool. Mr. and Mrs. Tanner are kind of crazy. But nice too. Oh, and I really like Tawny,” he added, worried that Diego would think he didn’t get along with her.

  “Good, good,” said the boy. He was looking out the windshield like he was counting the cars.

  “Um, is everything okay?” Charlie asked.

  “Yeah, yeah. No, it’s fine. I just … Charlie, can I ask you something?”

  “Sure.”

  “Today, when I told you I was president of the GSA, you said you knew what that was, right?”

  Charlie felt his stomach tighten. All thoughts of the party vanished. Diego had caught him in a lie and now was probably going to chide him for pretending to know something that he didn’t.

  “I’m, uh, sorry,” he said quickly. “I don’t know why I did that. I was just trying to sound cool, I guess.”

  “Oh. Okay …” Diego sighed. He looked down at his hands, then ran his fingers along the base of the steering wheel.

  Charlie heard another car engine start up, saw its headlights turn on, then watched as it pulled away from the curb, drove to the next block, and turned left. The street was quiet now. White clouds raced across the cold night sky.

  For some reason, he was holding his breath. He looked up at Diego, who turned his head and looked back at him.

  “Charlie, the GSA is the Gay–Straight Alliance that we have at school. It’s, uh, set up so queer kids and straight kids can talk together. Can be friends, instead of bullying each other.”

  “Oh,” said Charlie. He was glad Diego was involved with something like that. Bullying could be a big problem. “That’s cool,” he added.

  “Charlie, you don’t get it, do you? I’m gay, Charlie. And I thought … well, I thought you knew.”

  CHAPTER 33

  Just Friends

  THE BOYS SAT IN THE CAR without saying anything while the cold began to seep in through the doors. Charlie felt his mind go blank. He could hear someone calling to a dog somewhere off in the distance. Then a low deep rumble from the direction of the water, which Randall had told him was the horn from one of the ferryboats traversing Puget Sound.

  Charlie’s small voice broke the silence. “I, uh, I didn
’t know that.” He thought about getting out of the car and walking home. It wasn’t that far. He figured he would walk in the opposite direction from where they had come and find it eventually. Didn’t his cell phone have GPS?

  “Yeah, I can tell that now. I feel kinda stupid. I thought that since you knew about the GSA thing, you knew about me too.”

  He ran his fingers through his hair, so dark now that it blended in with the interior of the car, making it look like the top of his head was part of the shadows. Only his forehead and teeth were visible.

  “Are you okay with that? With me, I mean? Jesus, I thought I was through with all of this worrying,” he added, more to himself than to Charlie.

  “What? With you? Being gay? Oh sure, it’s, uh, it’s f- … it’s fine.” God, he was stuttering like people did in bad movies. He saw the image of Ted Jones lying face down on a road somewhere. Soon Ted’s face changed to Diego’s, with blood running down his cheeks while several large guys stood around him taking turns kicking his side, his legs, his head.

  “No, you’re not. You aren’t. I can tell. Damn it. I don’t want it to be awkward, you know? I hate that part. Everyone rushing around telling me how great it is that I’m out and how proud I should be, while all the time I can tell they don’t want to talk to me about it.

  “It’s not like people hate me. Most people. There are some at P.A. who do. But really. My mom talked to so many faculty members, and even Principal Wang, to make sure it would be a safe place. I didn’t have such a great experience in middle school, you know? She’d wanted me to go to P.A. anyway but made sure that the school would do a good job of making it okay for me to be there and be out.

  “Anyway, like I said, it’s not like people walk up to me and call me ‘faggot’ to my face or anything like they did in eighth grade. But everyone sort of smiles too much. Even Mr. and Mrs. Tanner. They are totally nice and all, but …”