Chapter 3: Enlightenment
Bill reached for his eyeliner. Opening his compact mirror with the other hand, he began applying liberal amounts of makeup to his eyes, adopting the raccoon look he and everyone else were used to.
Georg walked into the part of the tour bus the guys had deemed the "living room" and with a great yawn, plopped down onto the couch. Tom and Gustav looked up from their video game for a second before going back to killing each other. Georg glanced around, then sighed. "I'm bored," he complained. "There's nothing to do."
"After I beat Tom, we could play a different game," Gustav suggested. The game they were playing was two-player only. Tom snorted and said, "I've still got five lives and you've got…oh, yeah! One."
"I'm sick of video games," sighed Georg.
"Well, we're not. Maybe you and Bill could do something," Tom said, taking his attention off the game for just a second to let Gustav catch up. One life wouldn't make much difference, and if it did, he could use a bit of a challenge anyway.
"Yeah, Georg, I could do your makeup! Or paint your nails! I hope plain black is okay, I just ran out of white yesterday." Bill turned and rummaged through the makeup piled on the table, missing the look on Georg's face.
"Uh, thanks, but unlike you, I'm a guy, and guys don't wear makeup. Maybe when your body starts producing testosterone instead of estrogen, you'll realize that."
Tom paused the game as he and Gustav turned to watch the brewing argument.
Bill's face fell, and he began putting all his cosmetics back in their bag, saying huffily to Georg, "Wearing makeup does not make me any more feminine than you, with your long hair."
Gustav and Tom sat watching the squabble like a tennis match, turning back and forth between the two, their video game controllers lying forgotten on the floor behind them.
Georg pulled his hair into a ponytail, snapping the rubber band off his wrist around it roughly. "No, you're right. Your being gay makes you feminine."
Tom and Gustav turned to Bill, whose eyes were flashing.
"You know, I'm sick and tired of the med- of you always making snide comments about my sexuality! You seem to have quite an obsession with it; maybe you're gay!" he snapped, picking up last palette of eyeshadow and throwing it in the bag, none too gently.
Gustav and Tom swiveled to Georg. Tom was snapping the sweatband around his wrist.
He stood up. "I'm not fucking queer! Just because you called me beautiful (1) doesn't mean I'm gonna turn gay for you! Go homo-crush on somebody else!"
Tom had had enough. Standing up, he shouted at Georg, "You know, if you're bored, that doesn't give you the right to take it out on us. I'm fed up with it!" He threw down the controller and furiously stalked off to the back of the tour bus.
Georg looked after him in embarrassment, his eyes seeming to hold a twinge of regret. But when he turned back to Bill, it was gone again, his face showing annoyance instead. He opened his mouth to spit out an angry retort, but before he could say anything, Bill cut him off.
"You know, Georg, I'm not gay, but if you were, I wouldn't make such a big deal out of it," he said quietly, disappointment showing in his eyes. With that said, he grabbed his makeup bag and walked out, following Tom.
Gustav gave a tiny "oh!" of realization. Georg snapped his head around.
"I'm not gay. Don't you start, too," he stated, his voice hard and his shoulders tense.
Gustav merely turned to the TV and switched it from video games to an episode of Scrubs. He let his mind wander, pensive over what he had just realized.