Page 68 of I'll Be the One

We all laugh, because she’s so happy and excited that her voice comes out in a squeak.

“Yeah!” I reply. “I’m down.”

I look at Henry, and we both smile.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

AFTER THE SUGARY PATBINGSU, TIFFANY ANDLana pass out in a food coma on the heated spa floors, so Henry offers to give me a ride home.

I’m still feeling a bit buzzy from all the chocolate and condensed milk, so I don’t notice that he’s been quiet for most of the car ride until he clears his throat.

“So... Lana and Tiffany. They’re a couple, right? Like, they’re dating each other?”

I glance up at the front of the car. Steve is listening to some comedy podcast at high volume, and both he and Portia are laughing along to the jokes. I doubt that they can hear us above the noise.

“Yeah, they are.”

I must look really nervous, because Henry holds his hands out in front of him. “Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against them. It’s just that... well, remember what Lana said about how she thought I was a jerk?”

“I’m pretty sure she was just kidding,” I quickly say. This entire conversation is making me uncomfortable, like we’re talking about something that I’m not supposed to know about.

“Nope. Lana probably already told you, but some of her friends went to my old school. I actually remember seeing her in a lot of my friends’ posts before we met today... back when we still followed each other on social media. And Harvard-Westlake is pretty small. So, she’s probably warned you about me. Am I right?”

I suck at lying, so I nod and say, “Yeah... but this was before we got to know each other.”

Henry laughs, but it comes out all sharp and bitter. “It’s fine. The rumors are true. Like I said before, I really don’t have any friends anymore. And it’s all my fault.”

“What happened?”

Wordlessly, Henry stares at me for a moment, like he’s debating whether or not he can trust me.

“One of the guys at Harvard-Westlake,” he says at last. “He was my boyfriend.”

I’m still processing his words when Henry adds, “I mean, I’m bi. I like girls, too. But at that time, I had a boyfriend.”

Henry’s bi, I think.Like me. I have this sudden urge to high-five him, like I just found out that we’re both members of some exclusive club. But it doesn’t really seem appropriate right now, so I keep quiet and listen.

“When I signed my modeling contract, my parents suddenly launched themselves into my life. They’d left me alone for themost part ever since I started going to Harvard-Westlake. I was alone in the States, they were back in Korea... it was really nice. But then, I became a ‘celebrity’ like them. I guess it’s understandable, since the Korean press found out about my modeling contract and went running with it. I had so many interviews and features online and on print, it was embarrassing. And suddenly, my parents wanted to be in control ofeverything. Even my personal life.”

“Oh no,” I say. It hurts me how much I can see where this is going.

“Things kind of exploded when they found out I had a boyfriend. They said I’d never make it big in Korea if everyone found out I wasn’t straight. I told them I was bi, that I liked both guys and girls, but that didn’t matter. They just said, ‘Well then, find yourself a nice girlfriend instead. Girls won’t develop crushes on you if they know you have a boyfriend. It won’t help your image at all.’”

“Henry. I’m so sorry.”

“No,” he says. Everything comes out in a quiet rush, like he can’t stop now that he’s started telling me everything. “You have nothing to be sorry about. And I don’t deserve the sympathy, either. I was extremely naive. I wanted to get my parents off my back, so I lied to them. I told them that I broke up with my boyfriend. It was fine for a while, but then, we got caught. Some girl took a picture of us kissing. My parents went berserk. They paid off the person who took the photo of us so she wouldn’t post it online. And then, they offered my boyfriendan outrageous amount of money so he’d break up with me.”

“What?” I’m so mad that my voice comes out in a loud yell.

Both Portia and Steve glance back at us. Portia lowers the volume of the podcast and asks, “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” I say. “Sorry.”

Henry waits until Portia turns up the podcast again before continuing. “It was a threat disguised as a bribe. My boyfriend, of course, completely lost it. And he had every right to. His parents found out, and they transferred him out of the school. Both our parents kept everything hush-hush, so our friends never learned about the details. But they knew something really bad happened, and that it was my fault. All of my friends were also friends with him, so. Yeah, I lost all my friends. That’s why I have no friends left.”

Henry’s story makes me feel really sad. It’s a painful reminder of why I can’t date girls.

“Lana and Tiffany...” I say. “Apparently they were both kicked out of their houses.”

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