Page 3 of Theoretically Straight

Harrison

You at church yet?

Theo

just got here, I’ll be down in a sec

Nathaniel and I meander to the entrance of the very intentionally industrial-looking building separated from the main sanctuary. Every few years or so, they try to make the structure look “cooler” or “trendier,” but it never quite makes it. A few months ago, they covered the front entrance with wood paneling and put the logo in all lowercase letters, but now it just looks like a corporate office that’s trying too hard to be hip. It’s more than a little funny if I’m being completely honest, but I would never say anything aloud about it. Except maybe to Harrison.

It takes a few extra seconds for my eyes to adjust to the relative darkness of the main room compared to the blinding September morning sun, but I’m immediately scanning the room for Harrison.

“Theo, my man!”

I’m greeted with a clap on my shoulder by Chase, the spiky-haired youth pastor. I put on a friendly smile that I can only hope is convincing. “Hey, Chase.”

“How is it going, brother? How goes the TikTok account?”

I try not to visibly cringe. “It’s fine. Same old, same old.”

“Nothing viral yet, huh?”

I spot Harrison standing alone across the room, and as our eyes meet, he looks like he’s stifling a laugh. I quickly look back to Chase. “Nope, not yet.”

“Well, let me know if you want me to start promoting you on my account! And don’t forget, I’m still looking for someone to run the Foundation’s TikTok account. Are you sure you’re not interested?”

“Thanks, but I’ve got a lot going on right now, and I don’t want to overcommit.” It’s my practiced excuse to get out of most things, and it works like a charm on adults.

“Understood. Well, good luck! I’ll catch you later!”

I offer another smile and slide past him to get to Harrison—finally.

“How’s Chase?” he asks as his eyes look past me to Chase with a smirk. “Still asking about managing the Foundation’s TikTok account?”

I roll my eyes now that Chase has moved on to the next student on his greet list. “He means well, but geez.”

We both find our usual spot towards the back of the room and slide down the wall to sit on the cold concrete floor. “How’s yesterday’s video doing?” Harrison asks quietly as he pulls out his phone again.

I shrug and do the same. “Not great, but I’m not sure what I expected.”

“Yesterday, you were convinced this was the one,” Harrison argues, frowning over at me.

“Nah, I think the one we make this Saturday will be the one. We just have to get the timing right. TikTok isn’t the best platform for editing.”

“Bro! I’ve been saying that for weeks!” Harrison scoffs, pushing his glasses up on his nose. “YouTube is superior in literally every way, and I have way more editing software for real videos. TikTok is shit, and you know it.”

My eyes widen, and I shoot him a stern look.

He rolls his own eyes in response. “Crap.TikTok iscrap,and you know it.”

“I know, but even you have to admit it’s more fun than YouTube. Only old people and little kids are on YouTube. We need to be on GhostTok.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Harrison mumbles and turns his attention back to his phone. “Whatever, I’ll still bring my Sony a6000 on Saturday so that we might actually capture something.”

For the first time all day, I feel a jolt of excitement. Just the possibility that we might catch something,anything, on video that even remotely resembles the paranormal is exhilarating in a way that only my close friends really get. I lean my head back against the wall and smile at the thought.

“Hey, you know Sienna’s back today, right?” Harrison practically whispers, raising one of his eyebrows.

In an instant, the excited feeling of anticipation is gone, and the twist of something else in my stomach is back. “Yeah, I know.”

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