Free Status Update (#gaymers) by Annabeth Albert

make myself scarce and stream a video on my phone if I can.”
    “I doubt there’s Wi-Fi, and cell phone coverage is going to be crappy out here in this weather. You want to watch a movie on the TV in the bedroom while I work out here? I own some DVDs and I bet we have similar tastes.”
    “Yeah? You own gladiator porn too?” Adrian joked just to watch Noah turn pink.
    “Sci-fi. I meant sci-fi. Mainstream sci-fi.” Noah’s words were an adorable rapid-fire jumble before he took a breath. “I don’t own any...salacious titles.”
    “I do love your vocabulary.” Adrian slapped him on his shoulder on his way to the bedroom. “Translation: you mean you stream your porn or it’s on your e-reader. It’s okay. I get it. I’m cheap too.”
    Noah cast a guilty glance at his laptop. Oh yeah. Adrian wouldn’t mind an hour alone with Noah’s search history.
    Noah dug a battered leather wallet of CDs and DVDs from a bin helpfully labeled Media and Misc Electronics.
    “Here you go. The DVD player is already hooked up. Don’t...” Noah trailed off, his tongue coming out to lick at his lips. “I mean, watch your movie, but don’t...” His hands moved restlessly.
    Adrian took pity on him. “Don’t go exploring your stuff. I get it. You do know I’ve got some restraint, right?”
    Noah gave him a skeptical look. His posture, always impeccable, was extra formal now, shoulders stiff and spine straight enough to audition as a radio tower.
    “I do . ” Look at me , not jumping you. “Get to work. I’ll make you a snack and some more tea in a while.”
    “You will?” Noah sounded more stunned than he had at the gladiator porn suggestion.
    “Yup. Someone has to take care of you, Professor.”
    “Thanks.” A strange light flickered in Noah’s eyes—longing? Discomfort? Whatever it was, it passed before he turned to walk back to the dining area, shutting the door softly behind him.
    Adrian raised Noah’s window shades so he could watch the snow fall while he watched the movie, but true to his promise, he didn’t go snooping in Noah’s stuff. The room was teeny tiny—double bed in the center with cabinets behind it and on the walls. The TV was mounted to one of the long, narrow cherrywood cabinets facing the bed. The bed was made, complete with hotel-quality pleats for the pillows and corners. Guilt at invading Noah’s space tickled his spine as he settled against the pillows, rumpling the bedspread despite his best efforts.
    Yeah, that was him, the annoying disrupter of Noah’s perfectly ordered world.
    * * *
    The wind outside howled, whipping the sides of the motor home. Outside his little dining window, snow was coming down in huge pillowy sheets. Another whistle, this one closer, diverted Noah’s attention. Adrian was in his kitchen, grabbing the kettle right as it whistled and pouring it over a fresh tea bag in Noah’s favorite mug.
    “You’ve worked three hours with no breaks.” Adrian slid Noah the cup.
    “Yeah,” Noah said. The tea was nice and strong, exactly how he liked it. He’d sensed Adrian puttering in the kitchen, but he’d been deep enough into his work that it hadn’t distracted him. That and Adrian was good about not making a pest of himself, not bothering him with endless questions about where he kept things or trying to make small talk while he worked in the kitchen.
    “Ready for some food? You had cheese and meat and bread, so I made you a grilled sandwich and used your lettuce to make some wraps for me.”
    “Thanks.” Moving some papers out of the way, Noah gratefully accepted the plate.
    Instead of sitting across from him, Adrian stepped behind him and peered over his shoulder.
    “Trust me, it’s very boring.” Noah laughed. “The audience is other geoarchaeologists interested in Paleo-Indian cultures and how terrain shaped their evolution.”
    “You should hear the conversations we get into for Space Villager . We’re all about how terrain influences culture. Trust