Page 5 of Ravenous

“It’s a pretty town!” he insisted, pulling out his phone and tapping the screen awake. “It’s got three coffee shops, a mall twenty minutes away, some kickass running routes, and I have friends here.” He started taking video of the room, to use as the before in his before-and-after Reel.

“You don’t have any friends here.” Biz put a hand on her hip.

“I do, Bizmark. Liam Gray lives five minutes away.”

“That’safriend." Tommy stood, brushing off the seat of his pants, then stopped with a frown. “Liam Gray? Isn’t that the guy whose parents died a few years ago? In a car accident?”

Ollie held back a scowl. Persistence had allowed him to reconnect with Liam, who seemed to be doing better than he had months ago, alluding through text that he’d found his dream guy and was in a great relationship, healthy and healing. He didn’t deserve to be remembered by any kind of tragedy. “Yes. He works at a catering hall. I saw him when I went to August’s wedding.”

“How is he? I remember him selling his parents’ house but then he vanished.” Biz finished the last of her stolen water.

“Good. Really good. Living with the love of his life, wants to be a lawyer. I gave him my number and we’ve been texting for a while, we’re besties now.” Ollie left out that he’d called The Pointe several times and even drove there, being extra charming to the blond manager who he’d later learned was Liam’s partner. But Ollie was within his rights; Liam’s pale and shaky countenance had taken up almost as much room in Ollie’s mind as Finn had, and when Liam finally texted, Ollie was a mix of excitement and relief. They were going to meet up for a shopping trip in a few days and Liam seemed thrilled that Ollie was - as of now - living close by.

“Can I take a pic of us? For Insta?” Ollie waved his phone and even though everyone grumbled, they were used to him and his ways so they posed for a few shots. Selecting the best one, Ollie added a filter and tagged it with#movingday #themuscle,and#bestmovingcompanyeveralong with the brand name of his outfit.

It was a cute photo. Ollie stood front and center, a wide pink headband keeping his blond curls up and away from his face, which had a light sheen of makeup on it. Fashion-forward in a matching pink shirt that was more like a tunic and soft gray leggings that were too nice to wear for a run but perfect for moving day, he worked his free and fabulous fit, aiming for affiliate commission.

Biz leaned against his left side, arms crossed, every bit the cool older sister she’d always been. She’d embraced a goth aesthetic as a teenager and had declared that it wasn’t a phase, it was a way of life. At the moment, her hair was split blue and black with a high line of bangs but that could change at the drop of a hat. Her eyebrows were shaved and drawn in harshly, her eyes drowning in eyeliner that had tails sharp enough to cut a man, and she had too many piercings to count. A full tattoo sleeve adorned her left arm but instead of the expected bats and skeletons, the design was all anime characters, for she had loved Japanese cartoons for years and participated in online fandoms that were in a completely different internet realm than Ollie’s makeup accounts.

Tommy stood on Ollie’s right, giving the peace sign and making what he calledthe demon facewhich was him sneering and sticking out his tongue. He was taller and stockier than Ollie, with the same blond curls, but he had soft brown eyes and fuller features. While Ollie had their mother’s delicate bone structure, Tommy took after their father, with a wider nose and chin, his cheekbones less noticeable.

Rounding out the group was Rain - Tommy’s best friend. Lithe and androgynous, Rain was model-level stunning, with intense gray eyes and long dark hair that surrounded his face in soft waves. Like Ollie, Rain had always been gay and never hid it. Unlike Ollie, Rain leveraged his looks to hit on anyone and anything that moved, and it worked for him. Ollie envied his confidence.

“Shouldn’t we be unloading the van instead of, I don’t know, lying around and taking pictures?” Biz checked Ollie’s phone, nodded with approval at the screen, and then headed for the door.

“I guess so.” Ollie smiled. “But it’s important to document things!”

“Yeah, yeah.” She waved him off, going back to the van, Tommy and Rain on her heels.

They made more trips up and down, moving the furniture first and taking a break when there were only boxes left. Sitting on the tailgate of the rental van, the four of them hydrated with more water as Ollie silently calculated the calories he was burning, checking his fitness watch even though he knew the number was inaccurate.

“Who’s that?” Rain jutted his chin at the porch, where a tall broad-shouldered man snapped photos with a decked-out camera. The lens alone looked like it cost as much as three pairs of Jimmy Choos.

“The landlord, Mason. It’s his place, he inherited it from his grandmother.” Ollie nodded at the white four-bedroom Georgian-style home, which had two floors, a basement, and a full attic. Several dormer windows protruded from the roof, a stained-glass fanlight hung above the door, and an open porch stood proudly across the front, where Mason was skulking.

“Is he creepy?” Biz squinted at him

“Is he taking pictures of us?” Tommy squinted along with her.

“Is he gay?” Rain twirled a lock of hair around his index finger. “Not that it matters.”

“No, he’s not creepy. He’s just insular. And he’s a professional photographer so,” Ollie gestured in Mason’s direction. “That’s what he does.”

“You should get him to take Instagram pics of you,” Tommy mused, rubbing his chin.

“I think he’d rather die.” Ollie giggled, imagining the face Mason would make at that request. “He does nature stuff, artsy stuff, and candids. Some of it’s on the walls downstairs. He was having a tough time finding a tenant because part of the deal is - one - leave him alone and - two - be okay with randomly having your picture taken.”

“Then you’re perfect for him, you social media whore.” Biz elbowed Ollie in the side.

“Hey, I resemble that remark!” Ollie kept giggling as she put her hands over her ears.

“No, no, no, that’s what Dad says! You sound like him!”

“You still didn’t answer my question.” Rain pouted, crossing his arms and tossing his nose up in mock anger.

“I don’t think he’s gay.” Ollie sobered, studying his new landlord, who ignored everyone, pointing his lens at the sky. “But he doesn’t really like people so you should probably leave him alone.”

“A challenge then.” Rain cracked his knuckles.

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