Evan is late and Chan is wondering what has happened to him. So many thoughts run through his mind, none of them good. See what's going on in this week's chapter of Super Trooper. Don't forget to visit the other Briefers and see what they've been doing! Their links follow my tale! Enjoy!
Super Trooper #23 (4.3)
Chan pulled his phone from his pocket… again. Five minutes had passed since the last time
he’d checked. It was seven-twenty now. Evan was twenty minutes late. And there
was still no response to his text.
Chan frowned. This wasn’t like Evan. That man was
punctual to a fault. If he even suspected he’d be a few minutes late, he would
text Chan and let him know. Twenty minutes and nothing? That was worrisome to
the extreme.
Chan considered firing off another text, but decided
against that. He stood outside his apartment, pacing back and forth, hoping to
burn off his worry through exercise. So far, that plan wasn’t working very
well. He was still anxious and growing more so by the minute.
Perhaps Evan had been caught in traffic. As a police
officer, he would know better than to text and drive, which would explain why
he hadn’t heard from him. But Chan knew that traffic around Tucker Falls never
got as bad as all that, and Evan would have found a way to let him know he was
running late.
That left two other explanations, neither of which
was to Chan’s liking. One, Evan had grown tired of him and decided to stand him
up, perhaps in favor of another man. Although that would be painful, and would
require much time to get past on Chan’s part, it was more acceptable than his
alternate thought—Evan was injured, perhaps dead.
Chan felt as though his heart might stop, filled
with a sudden pain so intense he had to stifle a moan.
How
could he live without Evan, now that he’d found him?
Willing himself to calm down, he could hear his
maa’s voice in his head, berating him for his pessimism. When he’d been a junior in high school, and
had just taken the ACT test, which was required for college admission, he’d
come home and whined to his mother, positive he’d done badly on the test and
ruined his chances to get into a good school. His mother had taken him in hand,
made him a cup of hot chai tea, and said to him, in her dear gentle voice, Chan,
whatever has happened, has happened for good. Whatever is happening is also for
good. And whatever will happen shall also be good. Later, he’d learned
she’d been quoting the Bhagavad Gita, which contained many such pearls of
wisdom.
As it turned out, his worries had been for naught,
as he’d scored a 32 on the test, and was admitted to his first choice of
colleges. He had to remain positive that whatever had happened tonight was for
good, and that Evan still loved him as much as he loved Evan. And they would be
together again soon, to celebrate their anniversary.
And he prayed that nothing bad had happened to the
man he loved.
Chan stopped pacing and glanced up at the night sky.
Distant stars glittered like tiny gems against a velvety backdrop. One of them
appeared to be moving. On impulse, he wished on the falling star.
Please
let Evan be all right, and please return him to me as soon as possible.
He shut his eyes tight, repeating Evan’s name inside
his head, like a mantra. The sound of a car door shook him from his reverie.
His eyes flew open. Glancing toward the street, he saw a familiar police car.
And striding up the sidewalk toward him was the man of his dreams.
But what was that on his arm?
“I’m so sorry I’m late,” Evan began to apologize
even before he reached Chan. Now Chan could see him better, thanks to the
outside light of his apartment he’d turned on when he came out to wait for Evan.
There was some sort of cast or brace or something on Evan’s arm.
Oh
my god, he’s hurt.
Not sure the extent of Evan’s injuries, Chan
refrained from throwing himself at his lover, although his heart told him to do
so. Instead, he managed to pull himself together and met Evan’s gaze,
attempting to assess his condition through his eyes. Evan’s beautiful jade eyes
seemed clear enough. Before he could decide more than that, Evan had pulled him
to him with his other arm, holding him close.
“I’m all right,” he assured Chan. “It’s just a sprain. I’ll tell you about it over dinner. I hope
they kept our reservations.”
“To hell with the reservations,” Chan blurted out.
“Those don’t matter. Only you. Are you all right? I know you just said you are,
but seriously… are you all right?”
to be continued
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