Page 91 of When Love Gives You Lemons
She looks unbothered, arms folded. “Isn’t the point of your community to accepteveryone? Hypocritical much? I have lots of gay friends. And a gay cousin. I think I’m—”
“Nope. That’s not how it works. That’s how we cannibalize our own,” I say. “Why’d you say we need trigger warnings?”
“Everything is about sex with you people.”
“Again with the ‘you people.’ ” Heat builds in my chest. I don’t want to blow up at Sienna’s cousin, so I’m hoping she’ll chime in and drag Jenni Lee before I do.
Instead, Sienna looks petrified.
Fine, I’ll do it myself. “Youkeep otheringus. There are a bunch of gay people here, and your ignorance and intolerance is showing. The bride’s brother is gay. You’re in a space that doesn’t belongsolelyto you. Be normal and navigate it, don’t be weird.”
Ever the politician, she says, “You misunderstood. I was simply pointing out an observation. Guess what? I don’t need to hear aboutyoursex lives while at awedding! Is nothing sacred?”
“Meanwhile, in straight religious wedding culture, ‘wedding nights’ and consummation is revered,” Monroe says with an eye roll. “But go off.”
Ignoring Monroe, Jenni Lee says, “I didn’t consent tothat.” She waves between me, Matty, Benny, and Nic, as if we’re taking turns blowing each other.
Monroe’s eyes bug out. “Did you really just weaponize consent?” She crosses her arms and digs her nails into the skin on her forearm. “I want to skewer you over an open flame and serve you with a spicy dipping sauce.”
“Relax, Roe,” Jenni Lee says. “I’m just doing what you all do. Demonizing anyone who doesn’t agree with you. I’m an advocate fortradition.”
“You’re a walking buzzword,” I say. “And you make zero sense.”
“You’re a content creator, right?” Jenni Lee asks, but doesn’t wait for an answer. “Kids watch your videos. They get exposed to nontraditional ideas. You get spicy online. You make sexual jokes sometimes, and all week, all I’ve heard you all talk about is sex, sex, sex. It’s representative of a larger issue that needs to be addressed with gay media. What values doyouuphold? I represent something more palatable.”
Nic Jr. laughs. “I heard Americans are, how do you say, prudes, but—”
Matty turns to Nic. “Did I overstep?”
Nic Jr. shakes his head. “Amore mio, in Italian culture, we are open. Sex is something to celebrate. It’spassion.”
“But you’re not queer!” Monroe says. “You don’t represent anything for anyone here. You—”
Jenni Lee waves a hand in dismissal. “It’s impossible to have aconstructive conversation without being assaulted or contradicted. My opinion is valid, and I have a right to voice it.”
“Matty said one thing that was pretty innocuous, andyouimply you’re ‘assaulted’ by that. That’s not a conversation. That’s an accusation.” Monroe’s voice trembles. “Beyond that, you’re around a bunch of queer people and trying to play victim when you say offensive things about them. Sienna ignores it because you’re family, but we all know your entire personality is going after gay people, and you think your law school education and mayor father protect you, but you’re no better than a picture-less profile on social media who say whatever hateful shit they want yet hide behind anonymity. You have a history of saying you’re queer so you can rail against LGBTQ+content online from the ‘inside,’ ” Monroe says, and Sienna’s eyes widen, though Jenni Lee remains stoic.
“It’s true,” Sienna says. “I never said anything to you to keep the peace in the family, but it’s offensive. Monroe showed me what you do online, how you constantly post about the need for laws that ban explicit gay content and propose censorship, yet you claim to be a member of the LGBTQ+community. You use it as a shield—”
Jenni Lee interrupts her. “Don’t police me.”
“Are you queer?” I ask, knowing the answer.
Jenni Lee clenches her jaw. “It’s gross that my own family is attacking me, but I’m not surprised. The bottom line is thatnormalpeople don’t want to hear aboutyourprivate activities, and I don’t need your lifestyle shoved down my throat. Come on, Fielder just posted a Clock story making out with Ricky in the grotto for the entire world to see even though Ricky has a boyfriend andI’mon trial?”
As the blistering sun beats down on my skin, my blood runs cold.
“How about this: don’t tune in, love,” Benny quips. “We’re people justliving, not PornHub.” He motions to me, Matty, and Nic. “All this ain’t for you anyway.” He makes another comment about how he’s glad they’re not blood related, but I’m not listening.
As Jenni Lee grabs Trav’s hand and yanks him away, spilling his drink on himself, I fumble with my phone. My hands are numb and trembling. I nearly drop it when I see the light blue circle around my profile picture. I didn’t even realize I was still recording! I run through everything in my mind—I thought I was pulling up the camera app, not Clock. But Clock is so second nature and I clearly wasn’t thinking (I was busy quivering from being so close to Ricky while worrying about an ever-growing boner), and I just went to Clock instead. By mistake!
A few thousand views and almost ten comments in the last twenty minutes already. Stupid clumsy club thumbs and dizzy headiness from Ricky’s beautiful, plump pillow lips! I blame him and the grotto.
Without hesitation, I delete it. No view count or “like” amount is worth losing the ground I’ve made with Ricky.
Matty leans in and whispers, “You okay?”
My mouth is dry; my heart races so fast my chest might explode.
