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"My parents are coming!" Richard Cameron exclaimed, forgoing any boundaries they may have had and bursting into Charlie’s bedroom, the morning birds singing alongside him.
"Get out of my room," Charlie groaned, looking at the clock at his bedside that bore an ugly 8 AM.
"Charlie!" Cameron pestered, and Charlie eventually rose, wiping sleep from his eyes as his roommate for the past ten or so years bounded around his small room, list in hand.
Cameron and Charlie had been best friends and roommates ever since Knox had left Charlie to his own devices back in eighth grade at Welton Academy. They had had their fair share of grievances, and thus, the two had gone through quite a bit together. After A Midsummer Night's Dream , Neil had been hospitalized for a few months, a mix-up in an aftermath that he was sure he had been destined to. They’d figured out all their shit very soon after.
Afterwords, everybody’s parents took the backseat. Neil had gone off to Yale for drama, Todd was off studying poetry there. Everybody from their little group had graduated and lived in New York City now. It was wonderful.
The two old roommates had been rooming together ever since Welton, and having graduated from Yale, they now lived in their dream city, New York City, together. Their apartment wasn't huge, but it was enough to provide separate sleeping quarters and a small area to have their friends over. It was just the perfect space to live in while Charlie meandered around film job after film job and Cameron broke out into the executive world of Wall Street.
"Charlie!" Cameron exclaimed, clearly manic, "Are you even listening to me right now?"
"Honestly?" Charlie couldn't help but laugh a bit, "Not really."
"Charlie this is serious!" Cameron whined, looking back through his list of things he had to accomplish before his parents arrived in three days.
"Okay, I'm sorry," Charlie said, finally waking up and looking at his roommate. He knew that Cameron didn't normally wake him up on his one off day a week unless it was for something very important. The last time had been that he was going to be signed to one of the most well paying companies in the city, and the other was for when his sister had called to tell him she’d had a baby. The events were few and far between. "What's the matter?"
"My parents are coming to meet some people from work on Saturday at our holiday party. They're getting in on Wednesday. I didn't think they were going to come, but they just called. Apparently my dad knows a guy who knows a guy who went to Welton. You know?"
“Sure.” Charlie grinned, thinking of the holiday party. He was taking his Saturday night at the bar off, just in case Cameron had asked him to come. Introduce him around as an eligible bachelor while he kept his eyes on the redhead the whole night. Of course, he hadn’t yet mentioned all of that to Cameron.
"What do you need me to do?" He asked, getting up and throwing on a shirt.
"Well, we've got to go to the store, clean, I've got to get a boyfriend, we have to clean out all of Meeks’s alcohol that he left here from last time, I've got to rearrange the books in the foyer and I have to—"
"Wait wait wait, you have to what?"
"I have to rearrange the books in the foyer, and then I've got to figure out how to get my parents to sleep on the couch since they insisted on staying with me. Apparently since I'm the ‘next Clarence Darrow’ my apartment is huge."
"No," Charlie shook his head, "Back up to the top of your list."
"We have to go to the grocery store?"
"You have to get a boyfriend?"
Cameron turned crimson.
"What? What!"
"Well, uh, see, after I came out to my parents it didn't go as well as yours did."
"The only reason mine went well is because my parents are afraid I'm to go off the rocker at any moment. I’m their only son! I’m the heir! They have to love me no matter what basically.”
"Yeah, yeah.”
"Ok, sorry. So?"
"So... so I answered the phone and my mother said a lot of stuff and I just got really frustrated and told her that she’d feel differently if she met my boyfriend."
"She knows it's fiction?"
"She said my father's expecting to meet him at the party, if not sooner. They’re quite dense. It’s why I like my sister better."
"Jeez,"
"I know. And that's not all, they want to stay here! I haven't seen them since graduation two years ago and now they want to stay at our apartment!"
"It's going to be okay. I know plenty of people, I could make a few phone calls?"
"No," Cameron shook his head, "I don't want to be set up with your friends. It wouldn't feel right."
"That’s okay. They’d probably be sleeping on some couch anyways," Charlie laughed. Then, he gulped, thinking of something and just as quickly letting it go.
"I was thinking one of the guys from the Poets. We all live in the city anyways. I could call Neil or something."
"You want to bring Neil home to your parents?" Charlie scoffed.
"Well, I don't know. I feel like he'd be the only one completely willing. Plus, he’s an actor!"
"You’re so impossible. He’d rather shrivel up than even fake date someone for two hours. He’s too in love to even pretend to be in love with you." Charlie rolled his eyes.
"We could throw a red wig on Todd? Switch places?”
“Now you’re thinking like a madman!” Charlie cackled.
“This is so stupid, but it's only for a few days, and I've got so much to do and—"
"Jesus, Cam. I'll do it."
" What ?"
"I'll do it. I am literally the perfect option."
"How are you the perfect option?"
"I've lived with you for years. I know everything about you. I'm the perfect decision."
"I wasn't thinking of asking you,"
"We live together."
"And?"
"And your parents love me? What do you mean you weren’t thinking of asking me?"
"You'd do it? All of it? For me?"
"You are so dumb," Charlie shook his head, opening up his bedroom door and sliding past Cameron.
"What about my parents staying here? We'll have to make everything believable. We've gotta clear your room out and make up dating stories and follies. Charlie, this is going to be a serious commitment."
"I know," Charlie shrugged, finding things to make breakfast.
"That's it?" Cameron felt a smile crack into his face, "No begging, no pleading? You'll just do it?"
"I'd do anything you asked of me."
Cameron studied his roommate for a minute. He had never wanted to ask Charlie because in truth, he was worried he might let it slip that he had been in love with him for the past umpteen years.
"It'll be a rotten few days with them I'm afraid. They can be quite straight-forward."
"I know,"
"Are you sure?"
"It won't be that rotten."
"Oh, it will. Believe me."
"I'm not worried about it. We can start moving things around after we eat."
"You're going to willingly do this?"
"Of course," Charlie nodded, still not looking over at him.
"My parents..."
"Cam," Charlie sighed, the eggs crackling in the pan. "It won't be rotten. Not to me," He shook his head turning to him, "Not if it's you."
Cameron reddened and Charlie paled, turning back to the pan. It was silent for a few moments, and then Cameron spoke again.
"Well, how did we meet?"
"I think we should tell them we're engaged."
Cameron shifted uncomfortably in his seat he’d taken at the table, "Ah, hem, what ?!"
"We've been living together since we were thirteen.”
"We don't have to go that far. Besides, we can't get married anyways, it's illegal. I think my parents will want my life to be somewhat legal."
"You're already gay, aren't you? Legality shouldn't matter much to you anymore."
"I don't know... engagement ?"
"Yeah. So?"
"I-I, oh, I don't know," Cameron shifted, "What do you think we should tell them that isn’t so… drastic? So permanent? We aren’t even dating, Charlie.”
"Alright," Charlie placed the food together, then handed Cameron his plate. "Here's my take on it." He ran a hand through his unruly hair and began. "My thought process is this: we've been best friends since we were like ten. I know everything about you. I've been there for you when you've had a bad breakup and vice versa. We've cried and laughed and done practically everything together for years. We go to weddings together and you kissed me four years ago when you were drunk at one of Neil’s costume parties; then you threw up on my shoes. It's not going to kill me to share a bed with you or pretend to be your boyfriend for a few days. I'd do anything you needed of me."
"You sound like Todd." Cameron shook his head, "Want to move in after breakfast?"
"Well if I sound like Todd, your Neil impression needs work.”
“Is this dagger which I see before me?”
Charlie laughed then, genuine and clear. “I’m moving in after breakfast. But don’t tell my landlord. She’ll make our apartment more expensive.”
"Mother, Father!" Cameron exclaimed, "Hello! Welcome." The clock was nearing nine at night, as their train had been delayed by some bad weather.
"Hello, son!" His mother cried, immediately pressing kisses to his cheeks and fumbling with his hair.
"Son," His father greeted, shaking his hand.
"Welcome! It's really kind of you two to want to stay with us."
"Us!" His mother cried, "Where is he?"
"He's at work right now," Cameron nodded, knowing that Charlie probably wouldn't be home until about one with the way the subway ran. He worked as a bartender most nights, and wouldn’t be home until three if it was really busy. It was the only job that kept him afloat while he waited for his directing career to take off.
"Well, your mother is dying to meet him. I assume work is going well?" His father asked, a strange look in his eyes.
“It is, yes.”
“Good.”
"Where shall we put our things?" His mother asked, changing the tune and the dynamic of the room.
"Oh, follow me. This is our guest room." By the time Cameron had opened the door, it was very convincing. It looked as if it truly were a guest room, aside from books they didn't have places for lining the wall. Most of those were gifts anyways from Neil and Todd.
"This is all too kind," His mother sang, dropping her luggage onto the bed. "Shall we have some wine and dinner?"
Cameron simply nodded, wondering why he had never seen his parents act like this in his life. "I'll open a bottle and start some food. You two can sit wherever you'd like."
"Oh, Charlie!" His mother smiled, looking at their fridge clippings. He and Charlie liked to cut out little photographs of each other to hang on their fridge, and Charlie had insisted they keep them up, said it added 'texture' to their dating history.
"He had such a promising future. What’d he do with himself?" His father asked, looking suspiciously at everything.
“He still does.”
“He dropped out of college. I don’t think there’s much he can do now, is there?”
"I don’t want to have this conversation with you.” Cameron said, his first act of defiance for the night.
"What happened to him?" His mother inquired, looking around the various photographs.
"Yes, did you two lose touch after he dropped out of NYU?"
"No." Cameron opened up the fridge, getting out things to make some pasta. "He's my boyfriend."
For a moment it was so silent that you could hear a pin drop, then his mother burst into a speech about how happy she was for him. His father remained stoic, as Cameron had expected. The rest of the dinner was full of awkward questions and the occasional praise for his current line of work. It was shaping up to be the strangest night of Cameron’s life.
"Honey I'm home!" Charlie sang as the clock ticked to midnight. Although the words made Cameron want to crawl into a hole and never leave it, he was glad that his best friend had returned. He needed interaction with someone other than his parents, who he still couldn’t believe were awake. They wanted to wait for him.
"Hello," Cameron greeted, turning from the sink to him. Charlie quickly brushed past his roommate’s parents who were sitting on the couch, nursing more wine. Cameron had been cleaning up in the kitchen that was attached, trying to make small talk as an Ella Fitzgerald record played.
Without warning, Charlie set his bag on the table and pulled Cameron in for a kiss. Cameron quickly pushed away, the searing feeling of Charlie’s fingertips and lips on him sending him into a frenzy. They certainly hadn't discussed this previously.
"Oh, Charlie," Cameron’s mother came up, "I am so glad that it was you. I always liked you best." She pressed a kiss to his cheek and gave him a hug, and Charlie returned the favor with a bit of a gloat. These few days were going to be very long.
As Charlie hugged his mother and chatted with his father for a moment, Cameron let himself shamelessly take too long to look at his roommate. He was gorgeous. He always had been, and Cameron had been shamelessly in love with him for years. After that whole debacle of their sophomore year, Cameron had really changed who he was. Charlie had punched him in the face and it seemed to wake him up from whatever bad spell he was in. He’d needed it. Of course, he hadn’t planned to fall head over heels for Charlie Dalton immediately upon being punched in the face, but the universe always had strange plans for them both.
"Well darling, don't you think it's high time we headed for bed? I'm sure they have plenty of activities planned for us this week." Cameron’s father said, coming up behind his wife and shaking Charlie’s hand like he had at the beginning of the night.
"Yes!" Cameron’s mother cheered, and kissed both boys on the cheek. "Goodnight!"
"Goodnight," Cameron waved, watching as they went into Charlie’s room and locked the door. He quickly walked over and turned up the record player, not wanting anyone to hear them as they finally talked about the day.
"Any food left?" Charlie asked, rummaging in the fridge.
"What makes you think you can come into our apartment and kiss me? Right in front of my parents!" Cameron lamented, "I thought we set rules."
"And I thought I was your boyfriend." Charlie shrugged, grabbing some leftovers and a pan to heat it in.
"Charlie,"
"You didn't protest."
"Well how was I supposed to when my parents were there? I thought we agreed to hand-holding and the occasional pat of the knee."
"We do more than that already and we're not dating. You know that."
"Well I’m not bold like you, okay? I never have been. I don’t know if I’m ready for that kind of PDA around my parents. I’m sorry, Charlie, but it’s my life, not yours. I’m going to go to bed.”
Charlie stood in the kitchen dumb-founded. It had taken him every ounce of courage to be as bold as he had been, and he was unused to the two of them fighting. The truth was, he loved Charlie. He had for as long as he could remember. He didn't know how to tell him, and he hoped that maybe through these next few days he could work up the courage. Clearly, nothing was going to go the way he had hoped. He stayed silent as he ate and cleaned up, then turned the record off and headed for bed. He hoped Cameron was asleep, as to avoid any more arguments about his boldness. They had been tense that sophomore year, and even though it had ended in a burst of violence, he hadn’t regretted it. He loved whoever Cameron had become after that year. It was the Cameron he still loved now.
A lamp was on at Cameron’s bedside, and he was reading a tattered copy of The Great Gatsby . He didn't say anything when he entered, and it appeared that they were going to keep silent. Charlie sighed and changed his clothes, relishing in the pajamas.
"I'm sorry," He said, turning to Cameron as he climbed onto the bed. He loved to talk. He couldn’t keep silent about something like this.
"It's fine," Cameron shook his head, "I was just being a bit dramatic."
"You're quite good at it. Had me frightened,"
"I'm sorry,"
"Want to go to bed?"
"Yeah," Cameron nodded, reaching to turn the lamp off and take off his reading glasses.
"See you in the morning,"
"See you,"
The days passed slowly, albeit a bit painfully. They ran into Todd at their favorite coffee shop with Cameron’s parents, and they'd had to tell him since they were holding hands. Todd had launched into a long story about how he had always known they were perfect for each other. On Friday, they'd gone to see Neil's play, and his mother had cried when Neil died in the end and when they'd gone to the stage door Neil had kissed Todd, and everybody in Cameron’s family seemed to understand that pair. Cameron’s head felt like a tornado. They'd been pretty silent at night, and Cameron was glad that this whole fiasco was going to be over soon. It made him dreadfully uneasy.
"Ready for your big night?" Charlie asked, straightening his tie in their mirror.
"Yeah," Cameron nodded, "I hope so."
"You'll be fine. Your speech is going to be fantastic. Employee of the month."
"You have so much faith in me," He smiled, and for a brief moment it felt like things were back to normal.
"Ready to go?" Cameron’s mother asked, knocking on their door.
"Yep!" He replied, and headed out with Charlie to get his parents ready for quite possibly the biggest night of his life.
"You look pretty tired," Charlie whispered, coming up behind Cameron at the party. "You want to go home?"
"It's my party," Cameron shook his head, "I can't."
"Cameron!" His mother exclaimed, rushing up to him. "Your father and I have been offered to spend the night at the Ritz! Send our bags over darling. I'm so proud of you. Your speech was fine. See you!" And just as quickly as she had come, she had left. Now that, that great distance. That was the mother Cameron had always known. The father who hadn’t said more than six words to him.
Cameron sighed as he watched them leave. "No-one to perform for anymore." He said, dropping Charlie’s warm hand. They’d gotten into a far away sort of booth, and they’d gravitated towards the other’s hand. It was silent and safe. Nobody knew and nobody suspected.
"Oh," Charlie shook his head, "Yeah."
A few hours passed before it was finally time to go home. Cameron was exhausted from all of the signing, photographs, and discussion he had had at the party. He was a natural introvert, and couldn't wait to spend a few hours alone. The company had arranged for a limo ride back to their apartment, and Charlie thought that he was living the high life.
Once they had clambered up to their hotel room, Charlie sighed. He looked like he was the slightest bit champagne drunk. Cameron was just glad the whole thing was over.
"I'll sleep on the couch if you want the bed," Cameron offered, beginning to call the door man to pick up his parent's bags to send them off.
"It's only one night," Charlie groaned, "Come on,"
"Alright," He answered wearily, too exhausted to fight his longest friend now.
He finished up with the phone call and finally, when all the tasks had been finished, Cameron took his tie off, kicking his shoes and blazer with it in the process.
He found Charlie in his room asleep, the bedroom lamp on. Cameron quickly turned to change, eager to fall fast asleep and do his best to forget these past few days. He was surprised when he turned the lamp off and Charlie had turned to face him. The lamp from outside provided just enough light so that they could see each other.
"Before this is all over tomorrow Cam, I've got to tell you something."
The other gulped. Charlie wasn't one to sound nervous. "What's the matter?"
"I'm sorry I've been so pushy this week. I know we set boundaries and I know I crossed them and I'm sorry. It's just that...I love you. I've loved you for years, and I never have to perform for an audience and show them that I love you. I can't keep doing this faking it thing anymore, Rich, even if it was only for three days. I want to be with you and I want to kiss you and hold your hand and accompany you to all your lawyer things. I want to do everything on Earth with you."
"You," Cameron was blown away, completely overcome with emotion by the suddenness of it all. "You mean that?"
"Of course I mean it. I'd do anything you asked of me."
"I've been in love with you since the moment you woke me up. Told me how everything I was doing was hurting our best friends. We walked under that cherry blossom on campus and you told me that you loved me but you didn’t love who I was becoming and—"
Charlie silenced him by kissing him hard.
"I love you," Cameron whispered, letting his hands touch his roommate's face. Charlie kissed him again, and to Cameron, it felt like Charlie would die if he ever stopped; so he kissed him back ferociously.