“Do they know that you’re—” David says. He’s not sure what Jake is. He knows he likes girls too, that he doesn’t just pretend to, so he’s not gay, and David doesn’t know if he’d consider himself bisexual, or just that David’s an exception to being straight. Though, despite the fact he’s not actually having sex with all his friends, David knows he isn’t the only guy Jake’s been with. He just doesn’t want to know more than that. “That you like guys?”

“Yeah,” Jake says.

“Really?” David asks, taken aback. “And they’re…fine with that?”

“Yeah,” Jake repeats, just as easy sounding as the first time. “Why wouldn’t they be?”

“I—” David says, isn’t sure how to answer a question that sounds absurd to him.

“I don’t know,” he lands on finally. “They’re really fine with it?”

“They’re really fine with it,” Jake says.

“Oh,” David says. He hates the look on Jake’s face, expectant. He doesn’t know what Jake’s expecting. Or he does, it’s just not something he can provide.

“I wish you were on my line again this year,” David says, the first change of topic he can think of, and, worried that’s saying too much, “My linemates are slacking off during drills.”

“For real slacking or just compared to you slacking?” Jake asks. David doesn’t know why working hard is something to make fun of, but he’s so relieved Jake’s allowing the topic change that he doesn’t take offence to what is probably a chirp.

“You’re going to beat us at this rate,” David says.

“Awesome,” Jake says, smiles a little lopsidedly. “Want to watch a movie?”

“Sure,” David says.

“You pick?” Jake asks.

“Okay,” David says.

*

Things go back to normal, at least mostly. Not normal like Jake doesn’t want to tell his family anymore, or that he’s forgotten that he asked, but like he’s decided to pretend it never happened. David should be grateful for that, that Jake’s willing to do that, but the question still sits uncomfortably within him, not just the request, but the fact that Jake would even want them to know about David.

It bothers Jake, he knows. He tries to hide it, and he’s good at it, good enough that David wouldn’t notice if he wasn’t looking for it, but it bothers him that his family doesn’t know about them.