Zane had left shortly after, and Riley cautiously walked into the kitchen.
"Mom…?" he said quietly. Her back was to him and she was washing dishes. The plate of cookies, which had long gone cold, sat on the countertop a few inches from the sink, untouched.
"Hi Hun." she said.
"Are you…doing okay…considering what you, um, saw earlier?"
"What are you talking about? I saw you and your little friend studying away. Maybe you'll get all your homework done for once."
"I get all my….hey, that's not the point. You didn't see anything else?"
"Was there something I wasn't supposed to see? You better not be doing drugs Riley."
"I'm not Ma, don't worry. I'll be, uh, in my room." he said.
Riley shook his head. He was pretty sure his mom had seen him and Zane kiss, Zane even confirmed it. So why was she acting like nothing had happened?
…
As he lay on the bed staring at the ceiling Riley heard the front door shut and he knew his father was home.
He wanted so badly to call Zane, just to talk and hear his voice. He usually did at this time, but something stopped him. Riley guessed it was because he was uncomfortable that his mom had caught them kissing.
Riley heard a knock on his door and it opened slowly.
"Son, we need to talk." Mr. Stavros said.
Riley nodded and followed him to the living room couch.
"Your mother told me about what happened today." He said. Mr. Stavros was not a man known to waste time and Riley, unfortunately, knew that well.
"Can you explain to me what this is about?"
"I think you know." Riley said softly.
"My son can't be gay." He said sternly. "What happened to the boy who plays football? To the boy who was on the cross country team and could run miles? To the boy I used to play catch with?"
"Dad, I'm the same person."
"No you're not the same. What you are, you're a freak. It defies nature. Its… it's disgusting. I can barley even look at you."
Riley took a sharp breath, trying to will every muscle not to punch his father in the face. He found it so ironic that he had said those same things to himself. He used to be so homophobic. He hated himself. And now, when he finally accepted himself, his parents had to screw it all up. The worst part was he felt regret. He shouldn't feel regret about coming out. Should he?
"This conversation is over." Mr. Stavros said, stood up, and walked into the den, not even giving Riley a second glance.