Phoenix
The Wechsler was closed to prepare the next art installation, but Phoenix knocked on the door anyway. He couldn’t ask his parents for advice—he didn’t want to handle their reactions to the fact that he actually had a date—and his brother worked long hours. Joel and Ben, he trusted as much as he trusted his family.
Ben appeared at the door a few moments later, his brows furrowed. He unlocked and opened it, allowing Phoenix to enter.
“Didn’t expect to see you here,” he said. “Is everything okay?”
Phoenix shook his head. “Not really.”
Ben stared at him for a second, then nodded. “Okay, come on back to the office. Sam and Faith are here, just as a warning.”
His heart beat slightly faster. He hadn’t expected anyone else to be present. It wasn’t that he disliked either of them—they had both learned his peculiarities over the years and knew how to treat him—but he had only wanted to talk to Ben and Joel.
“Why?” he asked.
“It’s lunch time. We have pizza, if you want to join us. Faith got cheese. She’s seeing if she can be vegetarian. I’m sure she’d be willing to share.”
He hesitated, but the need for advice won out. “Okay.”
They walked through the main gallery to the back office, passing the half-finished exhibit along the way. It was an abstract piece that had one wall covered with multicolored glass that had been smoothed down along the edges. Phoenix would have to stop by and see it after it was all finished.
Everyone was gathered around a long table in the back office. They turned and looked as Ben and Phoenix walked in, Phoenix swallowed hard, tamping down the desire to run. They’re not looking at you because you’ve done anything wrong, he told himself. It was a normal reaction, seeing who had entered a room.
The tension was broken when Joel stood up and walked over to grab another folding chair. “Come on in. We’re just having lunch.”
“Thank you.” Phoenix took his seat, staring at his hands. Ben had said Faith wouldn’t mind sharing, but he didn’t want to ask and be an imposition. It would have been so much easier if it were just Joel and Ben.
He jolted at a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Faith smiling at him. “Do you want some of mine?” she asked. “They were having a special on three large pizzas, but I can’t eat all of this.”
“That would be nice, thank you,” he said, relief coursing through him. Maybe this wouldn’t be as bad as he thought.
“What brings you out today?” Joel asked.
His confusion was understandable. Phoenix didn’t ordinarily drop in unexpectedly to the Wechsler. In fact, he only usually came in once a month to pick up his checks and look at the new installation. This was strange behavior for him. But then, quite a bit of his behavior had been strange in the past few days.
“I need advice,” he said. He took a fork and knife from the pile in the middle of the table and cut a bite of the pizza slice Faith had slid in front of him. “Personal advice.”
To their credit, no one made any snide remarks. Instead, they all seemed interested.
“What kind of personal advice?” Ben asked.
Phoenix took a deep breath and released it slowly. “I agreed to go out on a date with Ace Sherridan.”
“The same Ace Sherridan you had a crush on in high school?” Ben asked around a bite of pizza.
Sam looked between them. “Who is Ace Sherridan?”
“He’s a reporter, isn’t he?” Joel reached across the table for a packet of parmesan cheese. “The one who just moved back to town?”
Phoenix nodded. “He’s doing an article for Wilmingson Life about my art. I didn’t ask him to,” he added quickly. He didn’t want the others to be upset that they didn’t get their own articles.
“No, I would imagine Kenna did,” Joel said. “So a man asked you out on a date. How are we feeling about that?”
“I don’t know,” Phoenix admitted. “I never thought he would be interested.”
“Phoenix…” Ben rubbed a hand across the back of his neck. “I don’t want to be critical. Really, I just want you to be happy. But have you wondered if this is all just a big prank?”
Ben would bring that up. It was a valid point—it had happened before. The only time he’d ever gotten asked out in high school had been as a joke. As a junior, Phoenix had been asked to the homecoming dance by one of the boys in his class, Max Hague. He agreed to meet him in the parking lot of the bowling alley. The boy never showed up.
It was a painful memory, but Phoenix knew Ben was just trying to look out for him.
“Ace isn’t like that,” he said firmly.
Ben opened his mouth to speak, but Faith beat him to it. “Okay, so what is he like?”
Just thinking of Ace made Phoenix’s stomach do funny things he didn’t quite understand. “He’s nice. He doesn’t talk while I’m working and Lucy likes him. And he’s handsome.”
That seemed to interest all of them. “Handsome?” Joel asked.
A small smile flickered across Phoenix’s lips. “Easy, Joel. Find your own.” He paused, wondering how to describe Ace without sounding like an idiot. “He’s got red hair that’s sort of long, and he’s got muscles because he does Aikido. When he smiles…”
The fluttery feeling filled his stomach again, just remembering the way Ace had smiled when he asked him out.
“Well, it sounds like there’s definitely enough interest there that you should go out on a date with him,” Faith said.
That brought his mood back down immediately. Thinking about Ace in an abstract way and admiring him from afar was so much easier than actually going on a date with him. There was no way he could be hurt if he never let himself get close.
“I don’t know if it’s a good idea,” he said.
Faith crossed her arms. “Why not? You like him, he clearly likes you. Otherwise he wouldn’t have asked you out.”
“It isn’t that simple.” Phoenix took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. “He isn’t going to want someone like me. He said he likes my quirks, but that’s because he hasn’t seen the worst of it yet. I don’t know how to date. I don’t know how to do any of it.”
“There’s no time like the present.”
“Thank you, Faith, but really I think it’s for the best if I cancel.”
“Oh for the love of god.” She let out a frustrated sigh and ran her fingers through her hair. “What is it with guys not thinking they should date the guys they’re into? Honestly, do you have any idea how long I had to listen to these two go on and on about how much they liked each other, but were too scared to do anything about it?”
She jerked her thumb over toward Ben and Sam, both of whom looked at least a little embarrassed about that.
“Come on, Phoenix, what’s the worst thing that could happen?” she pressed.
Phoenix forced himself to think about it. If they went on a date and it went horribly wrong, then Ace would probably finish the article, leave, and never speak to him again. And he would be back where he started—no better or worse.
“Look, even if it is a bad date, that doesn’t mean everything’s doomed,” Ben said.
Sam laughed and linked their fingers together. “The first date Ben and I went on, we ended up back at his place with Thai takeout after the Italian place lost our reservation.”
There was really no way Phoenix could argue with that. Instead, he sighed and scrubbed a hand across his face. “What do I even do on a date?”
“Just see what he’s interested in. Ask questions. Get to know him better,” Joel said. “And have fun. It’s a date, not a job interview.”
“I can’t go to restaurants,” Phoenix protested feebly. “Too many people.”
Joel shrugged. “Then tell him. If he really wants to go on a date, it won’t be a problem.”
It seemed like everyone was in agreement—Phoenix should go on the date. While Phoenix was still uncertain about the whole affair, he trusted his friends. If they thought it was a good idea, then it was. Now all he had to do was wait for Friday.