Looking at him now, I don’t see how it is possible he’d hurt himself. I know that’s not science, just a hunch. But I feel his love of life too clearly. Maybe the Townies rumor is right—maybe the choice was never his. I feel even more protective—I thought he needed me to help him come out, but now I wonder if what he really needs is someone to watch his back.

I want him to know that I do. “I’m glad you’re having the talk with me.”

“It helps that you’re not from here. I’m not either, you know.” He says this with such seriousness, it gives me pause.

Oh. My. God. He’s a time traveler too.

“When are you from?” I can hardly breathe.

“When are you from?” He laughs.

“The 2020s!”

“What is that, like, the Jetsons?” He pushes me playfully. I don’t know what Jetsons are, but I know that he thinks I’m kidding, which means he is not a time traveler.

I try to recover. “I just mean I’m ahead of my time!”

“That I buy.”

“So where are you from, if not here?”

“We live in Syracuse now, but we moved from New York City. There were …” Again, his voice drops. “… these beautiful men there and they always seemed to travel in packs. I couldn’t stop staring at them, and I was kind of afraid of them, too. My mother called them every name in the book—he-shes, halfsies, queers, sissies. You cannot imagine the loathing in her voice. I decided at age eight that would never be who I was.”

I feel for him. Even with Mom’s limits, I never doubted who I was or whether she’d love me. Wanting to leap from the Ledges makes more sense in this light. But I can’t say anything like that. I just listen.

“We moved north to keep my brother and me out of a bad school, but Syracuse has its own problems. For years, Lanny has been nothing but worry for my folks, and I didn’t want to add to that.”

“So that explains the girlfriends.”

“Plural? Please. Tawny’s it.” He sighs. “I really did like her. But I knew …”

I lean closer to let my shoulders touch his. “You did the right thing breaking up. If you know, you know, and it’s better not to involve someone else.”

He scans the horizon, maybe looking at the lake, maybe trying to think what to say next.

“I just keep thinking about when we were in the paint closet.”

“Yeah, me too.”

Here it comes. Here it comes. Here it comes.

“About your boyfriend.”

Annnnd there it goes.