Page 22 of Ravenous

He had to end things. Right now.

“Just…just go.” Before Finn could say anything else, Ollie spun on his heel and ran upstairs, slamming the door to his room and locking it. A few seconds later he heard the front door close and the torrent of tears he’d been holding back burst free, streaming down his face as he curled up in his orange chair and sobbed.

He should have known better. He should have never put any hope into love or relationships because all things end, some sooner than others. That’s the way life was, so he should forget about Finn, forget about being with anyone, and focus only on himself, become as light as a feather so he could float through the air, ride the wind, and avoid any further disaster.

6

FINN

“Duuuuuude.”Dylanpoppedaroundthe back corner of The Pointe, his breath clouding in the frigid air. “We got fifteen minutes ’til dessert time. If I don’t haul your ass back in five, Marci is gonna light us both on fire.” Sinking lower into his puffy coat, he leaned against the wall next to Finn, who’d been zoned out, staring at the sky.

“Sorry, man.” Finn cracked his neck. He wasn’t cold. He wasn’t much of anything lately. He didn’t tend toward sadness or depression but after finding Ollie and feeling that brief connection, the lack of it made him feel even lonelier. The world around him seemed to run on an old film reel, winding around and around day after day, most of it colorless and without sound. Sure, that first kiss had made Finn feel good for months, which meant that the blowjob should repel his solitude for much longer, right?

Wrong. Getting dumped in the middle of it canceled the whole thing out. Finn had been, for lack of a better word, gutted. It was silly; for the amount of time they’d spent together he shouldn’t be in this deep.

But he was. He’d been in deep since the kiss in the car when Ollie’s soft lips had branded Finn’s heart. He didn’t believe in love at first sight but maybe there was something to love at first kiss. But it didn’t matter; Ollie wasn’t going to talk to Finn ever again simply because he wasn’t gay. Finn thought that reasoning was stupid and had picked up the phone countless times to tell Ollie exactly that, but he couldn’t bring himself to press the button. There was a small chance Ollie might reconsider but a greater chance that Finn would end up hurting even more.

“Spill it, dude. It’s been like, weeks n’ you’re acting like your dog died.” Dylan gasped, slapping a hand over his mouth. “Didyour dog die?” The words were muffled against his palm.

That made Finn huff a small laugh. Out of everyone at The Pointe, he worked with Dylan the most and since they had matching laid-back personalities, Marci had dubbed them Bill and Ted. Together they took care of odds and ends, keeping The Pointe humming at peak velocity. Finn hadn’t meant to abandon his duties but, after helping with setup, it had been too much for him to see the bride and groom happy and in love so he’d escaped, getting some air on the far side of the building away from everything. It was supposed to be a breather but he must’ve been gone for longer than he thought if Dylan had to hunt him down.

“Naw. I got dumped.”

“Oooohhh.” Dylan dropped his hand, nodding sagely. “Super bummer.”

Turning his eyes back to the wintery gray sky, Finn sighed. “Dylan, do you think sexuality matters?”

“Whaddya mean?”

“I mean like, if you’re attracted to someone does it matter if you’re gay or straight? Can’t I just…” Finn shrugged in frustration, looking at Dylan again. “Can’t I justlikethem? What’s the big deal?”

“Hmmmm.” Dylan put a finger on his chin, clearly in thought. “Well, I’m pan, right? When someone likes me, I don’t care what’s on their resume, yanno?”

“Exactly.”

“Buuuut.That’smydeal. Everyone’s got their own thing. And if their thing doesn’t match yours?” Dylan shook his head. “Then it ain’t meant to be.”

Finn didn’t like that advice because it was true.

“I guess…” He let out another long mournful sigh, not wanting to let go of Ollie, which was the crux of his problem. One part of him kept sayinggive it one more trywhile another part saidthis is ridiculous, you need to move on. He couldn’t figure out what to do, and it was bringing his brain to a clustered standstill. Although he’d spoken to Dylan, he hadn’t brought anything up with Owen aside from the fact that it didn’t work out and he wanted to get on with his life. Thankfully, Owen knew when not to push.

He wished he had more friends, someone else to talk to. As he aged, Finn wondered if his loneliness was a curse and it certainly felt like one at times like these, when he could use a wider support system. Finally, his brain decided to take pity on him and unsnarled, giving him a boon.

“Ellie? …She was super cool, I should call her. She has a good head on her shoulders, maybe I could bounce this off her.”

Dylan jumped, putting a hand on the earpiece of his headset and turning his microphone on. Finn’s was on the ground next to his feet, but he knew who was speaking and what she was saying since Dylan’s eyes got wider and wider.

“Okay. Yeah. We’ll be right there.” Turning the headset off, he pushed away from the wall, gesturing for Finn to follow. “We gotta go. Marci wasn’t kidding about setting us on fire, I know what a barbecue lighter sounds like and she was clicking one in the background. Why is she so scary, man?”

“She’s definitely an alien or a vampire or something. Have you ever seen her move? It’s not right.” Squatting down to retrieve his headset, Finn donned it once again.

“For real.” Dylan breathed out hard, his cheeks puffing. “She’s way too fast.”

“Don’t worry, if it comes to burning us alive, she’ll go for me first and you’ll have a chance to escape.” They made their way around the building, toward the side door. The reception was almost over; Finn could get through the rest of it. Strangely, his conversation with Dylan helped, even if it was just to get his problems out.

“Nice one, Bill,” Dylan laughed.

“No,you’reBill.” Finn pointed at Dylan. “I’m Ted.”

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