Page 76 of First Kiss with a Mothman

While his mom hasn’t made an appearance, all my friends and I have been in contact with attorneys who are going to try both Selena and Arie’s uncle for kidnapping and attempted murder. In the meantime, they’re being detained, and after the trial in a few months, Arie hopes to never talk to them again. We’ve more-or-less pushed away all of that negativity for now. We’re focused on orchestra, classes, our friends, and Caleb’s unfolding love story.

With the holiday concert over, orchestra class is complete. I guide Arie off the stage to the audience area where several students congratulate us. Maverick and his orc boyfriend give Arie all the accolades he deserves; they seem super happy. In the distance, faculty members congratulate Professor Fan on his conductor duties. When one male professor pats him on the shoulder, Fan pushes his hair back and smiles shyly at him.

Huh. Do I sense flirty energy in the air with the faculty? The great Creepin U truly is a magnet for gay romance.

Before Arie and I can leave, I spot two faces that make my smile fall: the harpy girls who have been whispering around me all semester long are walking towards us.

“What’s wrong?” Arie whispers. I keep forgetting that my wings give away my anxiety, and only Arie can hear them properly.

“It’s…those harpies I told you about.”

Arie squeezes my hand as the girls lock eyes with me. “Do you want to leave?”

I sigh. “No. It might be easier if I just, like…talk to them. Show them I’m a normal dude.”

“I’ll be here the entire time, babe,” Arie whispers. I don’t have time to tell him how much I love him before the girls approach us.

“Hello,” one of them says in a Spanish accent. It is then that I notice they’re twins.

“Hi,” I say as I continue to squeeze Arie’s hand.

“Are you from…That’s My Mothboy?”

I gulp and nod. The girls swoon and whisper to each other, then both turn to me. “We just wanted to say…we loved that show.”

“That’s great,” I say with attempted enthusiasm.

“When we were growing up, we were ridiculed for sprouting feathers and wings.”

The girl on the left nods at her sister and continues, “But when we saw you on TV, it gave us confidence.”

“Life wasn’t so bad anymore because you made people laugh. And if you could be accepted, then we could too.”

“So our struggles weren’t so bad because of your show,” the second girl says.

I blink at them. “Oh, uh, wow.” People used to say similar sentiments back when I was acting. But it’s been so long since I’ve interacted with anyone who used to watch my show and has said such touching words about me. My singing and dancing helped people?

“That means a lot, right, Mort?” Arie asks, tugging on my arm.

I shake my head and say, “Uh, yeah. Th-th-thank you so much.”

The sisters look between us and smile. They continue to speak in coordination when they say, “Well, we’ll let you two go.”

“You make such a cute couple.”

“Such a cute, happy couple.”

“Bye, uh, Mort!”

“Have a good holiday break!”

“Merry Christmas, if you celebrate!”

With that, the pair leaves, and we walk in the opposite direction. Once we get outside, Reginald lands on Arie’s shoulder, but I continue to hold him close.

“How are we feeling?” Arie asks.

“Good,” I reply. “Surprised, but uh, honored.”