Page 33 of Pride High

DRHOTDOG: Any guys under eighteen want to go for a ride in my BMW?

CAMERONX: I do! Could you drive me to the police stationdowntown? I heard they’re offering a bounty for guys like you.

HUNGNHOT: Hey, don’t be a homophobe!

CAMERONX: The only thing I’m scared of is a doctor who thinks that hotdogs are an acceptable source of nutrition.

DRHOTDOG: Are you really under eighteen?

CAMERONX: Never mind. I think I am turning into a homophobe. Does anyone here have a heart?

That got him. Ricky reached for his keyboard.

SKYLAR99: I do.

CAMERONX: Good. I’m ugly, old, and impotent. Send me a request if you’re still interested.

Ricky laughed. He wasn’t sure how serious this person was, but he clicked on the username and sent a request for a private chat session. It was accepted. The screen reloaded and looked the same, except now they were the only two people in the chat room.

CAMERONX: Hey! Let me put my dentures in. I know it sounds weird, but I can’t read without them. Although you probably get it, seeing as how you’re 99 years old.

SKYLAR99: I’m not that old! That’s the year I was born. 1899.

CAMERONX: Oh! That means you’re only 93, which is a little young for me. It was nice talking to you though.

SKYLAR99: Wait! Just give me more time. Like… 6 more years.

CAMERONX: Make it 7. I never date anyone who is less than three digits old.

Ricky loved a guy who could make him laugh, although he was starting to wonder if he really was talking to an old man. If so, at least it was more entertaining than those other creeps.

SKYLAR99: What are you up to tonight?

CAMERONX: Taking a break from my demanding social life. It’s hard being so popular, you know?

SKYLAR99: Totally. I have one whole friend at school and we never hang out unless there’s homework.

CAMERONX: Wait a minute… Aren’t you a little old to still be in school?

SKYLAR99: I’m a very slow learner.

CAMERONX: How far have you made it?

SKYLAR99: I’m a junior. Which gets confusing, because technically that makes me a senior who is a junior.

Of course he was only a lowly freshman, but his parents always encouraged him to be careful when talking to strangers online. No real names or locations. That was the deal. And if Ricky was going to invent such details, he figured he deserved an upgrade.

CAMERONX: I’m still a sophomore, if that makes you feel better.

SKYLAR99: That depends how old you are.

CAMERONX: Fifteen. Yes really, and I swear to god, if you say something gross next, I’m hanging up.

SKYLAR99: Want to go for a ride in my BMW?

CAMERONX: Ha ha! I like you.

SKYLAR99: Thanks. I’m only 17, by the way.

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