Theories That Make Hearts Burn

Let’s not start from the exact beginning, but from the moment everything started to change. Messing around with my new cell phone, I started checking out the ring tones it had and snapping pictures with the built-in two mega pixels camera. I hadn’t put any songs in it yet, because I had just bought it and was still getting used to it. It was black and sleek; shinier than my old one. I had fallen in love with it from the moment I saw it at the store on display. I was extremely picky in technology. This one had a decent amount of memory space, all the features I needed in a mobile phone, like a calculator, alarm clock, music player, among other features.

Anyway, I had already taken about ten pictures and changed my ring tone about five times, when I got a text message from one of my friends, Ray. He had just returned from his three week holiday to Spain and wanted to meet and catch up on the news. It was the last day of our summer break. I responded to him and asked him the location and the time. Once I received his message, I changed my shirt, because I still had my pajama shirt on, and went out of my house.

It was a fairly sunny day, perfect for a walk in the park or a day at the beach. I myself had gotten sun burnt a few times just by spending a day out of the house. The heat sometimes would be intolerable but in that August day, it was just fine. The sky wasn’t completely clear, some clouds decided to paint the blue of the sky with swirls of white.

After a few minutes, I found myself in front of Ray’s favorite coffee place, the ever famous Starbucks. I was also fond of it, but I thought the prices were absurd! Too expensive for my taste, I rarely went there. Being punctual was something I valued. I was never late to anything. Ever. Unless there was a real reason for it, like a traffic jam or personal issues, but other than that, I was never late. I went inside and sat a table for two.

I waited a couple of minutes. Ray didn’t arrive late either, usually. But I had arrived very early. Almost a fifteen minutes before the time that had been established. I messed a little more with my cell phone until I saw a guy with curly hair entering. He was very tan and had a pair of sunglasses on. He probably bought them in Spain and I wasn’t surprised about his tan, he probably spent everyday at the beach or out in Barcelona or Madrid or wherever he went.

What surprised me was the person who was with him: Gerard. He was a classmate of ours at school. He wasn’t tan at all, he was fairly pale. He was smiling, laughing at something Ray was saying. Such a nice smile… His eyes seemed greener than usual. He was wearing a black t-shirt. I wondered how many he had, because he wore a different one almost every day. He also wore a pair of baggy jeans. His shaggy hair wasn’t so long and it wasn’t so short either. He was…gorgeous. And coincidentally, he’s the boy I’ve secretly liked for the past four months.

They both spotted me and started coming towards me. Ray greeted me first, trying out some words he had learned whilst in Spain. Gerard came after, greeting me as well. Ray sat in front of me and Gerard grabbed an extra seat from the table beside us, because I didn’t know he was coming. Ray didn’t even seem to notice that he hadn’t asked me if I minded that Gerard came along too. Gerard, the boy I had a huge crush on!

He started asking me a series of questions about my holidays. I gave short answers to all of them, since my summer holidays weren’t that phenomenal or different from the previous ones. Then he proceeded to brag about his own fantastic holidays in Spain. I don’t blame him. I’d do the same, since I’ve never left the States. I got envious of him, when he said he would go there for three weeks, but my day would come, so I just felt happy for him. He started talking about the beaches, the hotels, the girls, the monuments... Well, mostly he talked about the beaches and the girls. The rest were just brief mentions.

I could hear every word he was saying, but I was slightly uncomfortable around Gerard. We were never that close as friends, we were both Ray’s friends. That’s how we met. But probably just because I tried to avoid him, since I found out I had feelings for him and don’t even know his sexual orientation. I hadn’t told Ray about my crush, so I didn’t ask him about Gerard’s sexual orientation either.

Suddenly, Ray stopped and asked me and Gerard if we wanted anything to drink in particular. I shook my head at once. Like I said, too expensive for my taste. Gerard was about to get up when Ray offered to order and pay for the day. So Gerard said what he wanted and Ray went to the counter to order the drinks. That left me alone with Gerard at the table.

I grabbed my cell phone from my pocket and checked the time. I didn’t have a curfew, but I wanted to be home before dinner time. Gerard spotted my cell phone and asked immediately if it was new. I nodded and he asked if he could have a look at it. I didn’t have anything that personal on it yet, so I handed it to him. He looked like a little kid examining the little gadget before him. Turns out he had wanted to get one as well, but he couldn’t afford one yet. He asked if he could check the stuff out and I nodded. He started fiddling around with it. Then he grabbed his own mobile phone and asked me “Can I put my number on your contacts? And can I have your number?”

“Yeah, sure,” I replied. He continued messing with both our cell phones, his old and scratched next to my brand new one, until Ray arrived with both their drinks. Gerard handed me back my mobile phone with a smirk. He was always smiling and smirking, so you could rarely know if he had plotted something or if it was just his way of being.

That’s about everything that happened that afternoon. The rest went on without any particular highlights. Ray continued talking about his adventures and I continued looking once in a while at Gerard, not resisting temptation. He was just that beautiful and at the same time intriguing to look at. The time for us to leave to meet again the next day at school soon arrived and we left Starbucks, with the sun still high in the sky.

Let’s skip the first two weeks of school, because they were just a blur. Basically us adapting to our new schedules and teachers. Not much for me to say. Now, here’s the moment that will probably remain as the most unforgettable and embarrassing moment in the story I’m telling you.

I was in a typical math class, resolving some difficult equations that the teacher had asked us to do. The classroom was completely silent, partially due to the concentration and partially due to the lack of concentration and abundance of drowsiness. I was about to finish the fourth equation when I suddenly hear this slightly familiar tune. It was getting louder. Everyone started looking around, looking at the origin of the sound. Everyone was shocked. And everyone was looking at my backpack. And everyone started laughing. For the tune that was playing was actually the song “Fack” by Eminem. Now picture that song blasting loudly in the middle of your silent math class and what would you do? I did the only thing I could: I reached for my bag as fast as I could and rejected the call. But before I rejected I checked who had called. Gerard. Oh, that motherfucker!

The teacher didn’t know exactly what to say or do. He was furious because I had forgotten to turn off my cell phone and because my ring tone had offensive content, to say the least. He eventually confiscated the cell phone until the end of the class, when he gave me a sermon on how I should leave it turned off or at least on silent whilst in class. The rest of the class, all I thought about was getting back at Gerard. It could’ve only been him putting the ring tone for his contact that song. He had planned that all along.

I was going to find him after school and... Well, I’m still not sure what I’ll do to him! But it will be good. I think. I needed to do something. He couldn’t just do that and get away with it. Never resort to violence, one of those educational TV show voices played in my head. Fuck violence, I have other ways of getting revenge, I thought to myself.

All my thoughts dissolved into thin air when I saw him after school, holding his cell phone with a Machiavellian smirk on his otherwise angelic face. Even after all of that, I couldn’t be mad at him. He was at one corner, when I had given up looking for him at school and decided to go home. We were alone there.

“Did you like the ring tone?” He asked, his smirk never leaving his face. I gave him my menacing glare. He just laughed at it. “I love that song…” He said really randomly. I had to admit, it was a pretty catchy song. But that wasn’t what I wanted to talk to him about.

Before I had time to ask anything else, he asked “Why were you eyeing me that day we went to Starbucks and also last year at school?” He had a questioning expression this time. I froze. He noticed. Out of all people, he noticed. “It almost looks like you have this secret gay side to you and you feel something for me.” He said it in a joking tone. And laughed. And laughed more before waiting for my answer.

I was still frozen. He had been dead on with his not so serious hypothesis. He said “Earth to Bob. Are you there?” I managed to nod and he raised one of his eyebrows. “If you don’t answer soon, I might just have to kiss you to see if my theory is correct…” He was smirking again. He was really close to me. Less than a meter of distance between us.

I couldn’t help being frozen. I had never been in that position. Ever. So I didn’t know what to do. Where was Ray when you needed him? Gerard, I don’t know how to say this, but I am madly in love with you….I practiced answers in my mind. Gerard, I’m gay and I think I like you…All of them not seeming right. “Gerard, your theory doesn’t need to be proven, because it’s true.” I hadn’t noticed that I had verbally spoken my thoughts, until my hands met my lips, covering them. I hoped he didn’t hear it. Fuck!

“What?” He was surprised.

I tried to explain myself: saying that I was just joking…

The blushing didn’t help.

And that I was just being sarcastic…

The stuttering didn’t help.

Nothing helped me. Just proved to him that he had heard my words correctly. Now, he would probably run away, avoid me, block my calls, run away at my sight in school… But he interrupted all my thoughts and my words with a brief meeting of our lips, a kiss. It felt exactly how I expected it to feel, maybe even better. I could feel sparks, fireworks, all those things people write about in love stories. Things I had never felt until that moment.

“Don’t make this harder, Bob, I’ve been hoping my theory was correct from the moment I invented it.” He was smiling. I was smiling. And I kissed him back. One thing I still didn’t get was the reason why he’d done it to me. The ring tone thing. He decided to explain trying to impersonate a scientist “Like the old saying says: ‘if the mountain won't go to Mohammed, Mohammed must go to the mountain’. So I had to make you come to me, because I was too much of a chicken to take the first step.”

Oh, Gerard, how could I ever have been mad at you? I asked myself. I guess I just couldn’t resist looking at those green eyes without feeling my heart burn with love. Oh, Gerard, you make my heart burn…