Eight eyes are staring hard at us. Derek leaps for the button to close the elevator but the big, jacked guy with them steps in the doorway to prevent it. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Jacked asks.
"Stop it, Trav. I told you I think he really likes this guy," a man with sandy blond hair replies.
"Gary!" Derek rushes out.
"You're tattoo guy," the redhead says to me.
"Do you want a cookie?" Glasses says, holding up a bag, obviously trying to distract me. "I made cookies."
My brain is spinning. I don't know which one of them to pay attention to as they all start speaking to Derek and me. Derek is waving them off, trying to ignore them, before Jacked grabs him and tries to pull him out of the elevator.
I reach out, putting my hand on the back of Derek's neck and keeping him with me. Who the fuck is this guy to put his hands on Derek?
But then Derek looks up at me and smiles. "It's okay, Jackson. He's a friend. Ugh. Come on. I guess we can't stay in this elevator forever."
We step outside of it, eyes shooting back and forth between me and Derek. He was right. I should have kept my ass in the Jeep.
"We're going to the zoo," I finally say. Jesus Christ. What's wrong with me? We're going to the zoo? I sound like I'm ten.
"Awww," the guy standing by Jacked says.
"Oh my God, Gary, stop," Derek tells him.
"Hi, I'm Travis. Nice to meet you. Any boyfriend of Derek's is a friend of ours and all," Jacked says, holding out his hand to me. As I shake it, he continues, "I'm sorry you're going to get in the middle of it, but I really have to give Derek shit. He's never let up on me and Gare."
"Turnabout is fair play," I tell him.
"I like him," Travis says as Derek yells at the same time, "Jackson! You're not supposed to take his side!"
The redhead interrupts. "You came into my shop a while back, looking to get some ink. I see you didn't go anywhere else. When will I see you again?"
"Cody, quit trying to tattoo Derek's friend," Glasses says.
"No. I plan to go back. I've just been a little busy."
"Derek can do that to a guy," Travis says.
"I hate you," Derek replies.
"I'm going to enjoy this," Travis adds. Everyone introduces themselves and I discover Cody and Hayden are a couple as well as Travis and Gary. They all live in Metropolis and are obviously friends of Derek's.
The longer we stay here, the more uncomfortable Derek is getting. I'm not sure if it's better to keep my distance or not but then I decide, fuck it, I like touching him, and I want to touch him and offer my support. I hold onto the back of his neck again, rubbing my thumb against the soft skin there. Every pair of eyes watches the movement, and this really is getting uncomfortable, so I say, "It was great to meet you all but we should probably go."
"Cool. You're welcome to go out with us sometime, Jackson. We often hit up Flirt on the weekends."
I nod, not confirming one way or another.
"Call me later, Derek," Gary says.
"Catch'a later, Bottom Boy," Cody tells him, "And seriously, come see me, Jackson."
We make our way out of the building as quickly as possible. "Bottom Boy?" I ask.
"Cody writes comics. I wanted my own. Next, it'll likely be The Adventures of Bottom Boy and Daddy." We get back to the Jeep, and as I pull away, Derek says, "They're crazy."
I shrug. "They care about you. That much is obvious. I'm glad you have them. You should tell me about them sometime." I want to know more about Derek's life. I want him to know more about mine.
He's quiet for a moment. "Okay … I will."
Maybe today will be the perfect day for that. And tonight because I definitely want more of him. "I want to share a bed with you again tonight. I'm putting that out there right now. Plus, it'll make it easier for tomorrow if we're both leaving from one place."
"Yeah … sure." He shrugs. We're fucking nuts. "Seriously … how can you be human and never have been to the zoo?" Derek asks as I begin to drive.
"It's not something my mom really did with me growing up. I don't know why I've never gone as an adult or with my family." I shrug. "Maybe because for some reason, I was supposed to go for the first time with you."
It's probably the most ridiculous thing I've ever said in my life, but when Derek smiles at me, I find I don't want to take it back … and maybe I believe it's true.