“It’s not like depression,” Luis said. “When you’re depressed you just eat as much chocolate as you can and watch old movies that make you cry. This feeling is more like being terrified of something that isn’t there. You’re scared, but you’re not sure why and you don’t know if the feeling will ever go away. Don’t you ever feel that way?”
Jase smiled. “Yes, I do,” he said. He’d felt that way so many times since the night he’d realized he was middle aged, and he’d decided to cut his hair, buy tight low-rise jeans, and move to a fifth-floor walkup on the Upper West Side to find out who he was.
“When I feel that way,” Luis said, crossing back to the kitchen, “I go to Elena’s Romantic Treasures and Tidbits. It’s a blog on the Internet, written by this wonderful woman in France who loves everything about gay men. It’s a magical place, no kidding. When I’m there, nothing bad can happen, and all those horrible feelings go away.”
While Jase stood there holding the iPhone, Luis poured himself a tall glass of orange juice and walked over to the French loveseat. When he sat down, the back of his white shirt rode up and exposed half of his naked ass. Jase rubbed his chin and looked away. His jeans were beginning to tighten and he didn’t want Luis to think he was one of those aggressive older men who were always chasing after young guys.
“If I could just find something in my own life that makes me feel the same way I feel when I’m reading Elena’s blog, I’d give that little dog a name, set up house, and have a real life,”
Luis said. He took a sip of juice and pointed to the phone in Jase’s hand. “Didn’t you have to make a phone call? I’m sorry. I’m talking too much. People tell me I tend to ramble on about nothing.”
Jase smiled. “I do have to make a call. I just drove up here from Palm Beach and I promised someone I’d call Friday afternoon. I think this is Friday. I’ve been driving so much I lost track.”
“Oh no, I did it again,” Luis shouted, and jumped up from the loveseat. He pressed his palm to his chest with one hand and pulled the sleep mask off his head with the other. “This is Friday. I have an important appointment every Friday.” He ran into the bedroom and pushed the bathroom door open so hard it banged into the wall.
Jase started to dial the phone, but he stopped because the guy was still talking. He’d never met anyone who could talk so much without stopping for a break.
“I hate Friday,” Luis said. He was in the bathroom and Jase couldn’t see him.
Jase stood up and went into the bedroom. “Why do you hate Friday?”
“Friday always hits me in the face without warning,” Luis said. “One day it’s Monday, and the next thing I know it feels like a week with four Thursdays.”
Jase put the phone down on a table and stood there with his hands in his pockets. He didn’t want to intrude, but he couldn’t leave either. Though they weren’t talking about anything important, this was one of the most interesting conversations he’d ever had. “A week with four Thursdays?”
“There’s an old French cliché: in a week with four Thursdays,” Luis said, still shouting from the bathroom. “It means the same thing as ‘when hell freezes over.’ I read it once on Elena’s blog. And for me, after Monday, every day feels like a Thursday. Then, before you know it, Friday comes around and it’s time for the weekend.”
Jase rubbed his jaw. “I guess that makes sense.” It really didn’t. But he was enjoying himself too much with this adorable, funny young man to point this out.
“Would you be a sweetheart and look in the closet for a pair of brown Prada shoes?” Luis said. “I have to pull myself together fast. I look awful. And Derrick just hates it when I’m not on time for these showings.”
Jase hesitated for a moment. Luis didn’t seem apprehensive about giving a total stranger permission to look inside his closet. Then he shrugged, opened the closet door, and looked down.
There must have been more than a hundred pairs of shoes lining the bottom of the closet. And most of them were either black or brown. He wasn’t sure what Prada shoes looked like, so he grabbed a pair of brown loafers with square, flat toes and placed them on a bench at the foot of the bed.
When Luis came out of the bathroom, still wearing the white dress shirt, he looked down at the shoes and frowned. “Not those, silly. I would never wear them to a real estate showing.”
He went to the closet, pulled out some clothes, and reached down for another pair of shoes that didn’t look much different from the pair Jase had chosen.
But Luis didn’t get dressed in front of Jase. He went back into the bathroom and closed the door. And he didn’t stop talking. While he dressed, he told Jase he was meeting a guy named Derrick, an older guy who worked in real estate he met every Friday afternoon. He said they looked at real estate listings, and Derrick took him out for a late lunch afterwards. He also made it clear this wasn’t a date; just two friends getting together.
While Luis rambled, Jase sat down on the edge of the unmade twin bed and looked around. Though the bedroom had more furniture than the living room, it was just as messy and just as disorganized. But it wasn’t dirty. The white sheets on the bed were spotless, the wooden floors were shining, and the tops of the tables didn’t have a speck of dust. There was a faint smell of something spicy. In a hidden nook not far from the windowsill, Jase noticed a small light. He stood up and walked to the window. On a round pedestal table, he found a scented candle burning in a round crystal dish. He lifted one eyebrow and blew out the candle, wondering if Luis would have blown it out before he left for his appointment with this older guy named Derrick. Something like this could burn down the entire building.
But when the bathroom door opened and Luis stood there fully dressed, Jase forgot all about the burning candle. His lips parted and his hands fell to his sides. He’d never witnessed such a dramatic transformation.
“Do I look okay?” Luis asked. He leaned against the door frame and smiled. Every single hair was in place, his face was smooth and shaved, and his eyes were shining.
“You look great,” Jase said. Luis was wearing a cream-colored suit and brown shoes. His shirt was pale blue and he wasn’t wearing a tie. Jase had never seen a more attractive man. And he’d never seen anyone get dressed so fast and wind up looking so good.