Chartreuse by T. E. Ridener Page B

curious as to if Kasen and his mother had gotten along in his
childhood.
         Hopefully she wasn’t anything like his own
mother.  She could probably care less if Rowan lived or died.                They
had lost communication over the last few years, especially after she’d
discovered his homosexuality. 
         Rowan smiled at him, despite his own thoughts
as he put his own menu on top of Kasen’s as their drinks arrived. 
         “Are ya’ll ready to order?”  Nikki asked.
         Rowan nodded, “That we are,” He replied,
scratching at the side of his scruffy cheek.  “We’ll take two orders of hash
browns with cheese and ketchup, as well as two pecan waffles, please.”
         He watched as she scribbled on her note pad
before she nodded back to him, “I’ll have it out to you in a few minutes,” With
that, she turned and left.
         Rowan’s attention was immediately turned back
to Kasen, watching as he chewed at his thumbnail.  Was he nervous?  That
thought alone suddenly made Rowan pretty nervous, too.  He moved his hands to
rest against his lap as he leaned down for a sip of his cherry cola.  Then he
swallowed, clearing his throat.
         “So you’ve never been anywhere outside of
Chartreuse?”  He asked.
         “I know it’s sort of pathetic, huh?”  Kasen asked. 
“I always wanted to go somewhere else.  I begged my mother to take me to
Disneyland as a child.  But of course that didn’t happen.  I doubt it ever
will.  It’s not like I could tolerate all of the people there anyway.”
         “And why’s that?” Rowan asked, curiously,
hoping he wasn’t being too nosey.
         “I just really don’t like being around lots of
people at once,” Kasen said with a small shrug.  He picked up his glass of milk
for a drink before his eyes met Rowan’s again.  “I know that probably makes me
weird, but it’s the truth.  I sometimes have panic attacks if I’m around large
crowds.  It’s why I prefer my little solitary job at the radio station.”
         Rowan smiled gently, shaking his head, “That
doesn’t make you weird,” He replied.  “It’s pretty much why I prefer working
with animals myself.  They’re better than most people,” He could see the look
of relief on Kasen’s face as he gave him another smile, picking up his glass
for a drink.
          “I get that,” Kasen said, nodding his head. 
“I like animals.  I enjoy having Houston around.  He’s a good dog.”
         “He seems to be,” Rowan replied, “Napoleon’s a
good dog, too.  They truly are man’s best friend.”
          “Here’s your food,” Nikki said, sliding each
plate onto the table carefully. 
         “Thanks,” Rowan said as he pulled his plates
over to himself, pouring ketchup onto his hash browns as he watched Kasen eye
his own food.  It was like the boy had never been to a restaurant before, and
if that was the case; they had bigger issues to deal with.
         “This looks great,” Kasen said excitedly as he
picked up his fork to dig into the hash browns.  He took a bite, sighing and
nodding.  “Definitely great.”
         Rowan chuckled, glad to see he was having a
good time.  That’s what mattered most.  Rowan found that he was enjoying this
time with Kasen, and he was pretty sure the reason he’d invited him out to
breakfast at three in the morning was easy enough;  he didn’t really want to
say goodbye yet.
          This is dangerous.   His mind told
him.  You’re going to get hurt, is what you’re going to do.  Just wait until
you find out he’s straight.   He blinked.  But what if he’s not
straight?   He licked his lips, taking another bite of his food as he
looked up to Kasen occasionally.
         Kasen seemed to be enjoying himself, finishing
up his hash browns before he poured syrup over his waffle.  He took a big fork
full into his mouth, blue eyes lighting