Free Play Me, I'm Yours [Library Edition] by Madison Parker

he’d worked hard on his poems. Was this the best she could do?
    He couldn’t help but notice Lisa snickering. She was reading Donovan’s poem. Lucas guessed he’d written something raunchy or something really gay. Or both. He’d have to wait until it made its way around the circle to find out.
    He got Zach’s poem next. Zach hadn’t used a specific name. His poem spelled out “Dreaming of You.” Lucas wondered if that meant there was no one special in his life. No, that wasn’t possible. Surely Zach had a girlfriend.
    Lucas snuck a peek at Zach, trying to imagine how others saw him. He was wearing loose jeans and a T-shirt, like he always did. Most people would never know what his body looked like under those clothes. Lucas had seen Zach wear shorts on occasion, but guys teased him for having shaved legs. Maybe girls didn’t like that either.
    Or maybe it was his haircut. Zach wore his hair in a buzz cut. It looked dark blond, though it was hard to tell since it was so short. It suited him, but Lucas couldn’t think of many other guys in school who had a buzz cut. Maybe girls didn’t like that.
    Or was it because his brows were too heavy, or his nose too big? Surely they couldn’t complain about his lips. Lucas licked his own lips as he stared at Zach’s perfect mouth. Girls were crazy if they didn’t find Zach gorgeous.
    Zach glanced at him, and Lucas quickly looked down at his paper. Shit, he’d been caught staring again. He really needed to be more careful.
    Lucas turned his attention to Zach’s poem, Dreaming of You.
     
    D elicate fingers
    R each for me,
    E agerly
    A waiting
    M y embrace.
    I ’ll hold you
    N ight and day,
    G iving you and
    O nly you my
    F ragile heart.
    Y ou and I become
    O ne—our bodies
    U niting in love.
     
    His heart fluttered after reading the poem. He read it again. And again. It was beautiful. So romantic. So poetic. It perfectly described how Lucas imagined love would be, how he wanted it to be. Someone to hold him, to make him feel safe and warm and wanted. Someone who wanted his love in return. Did Zach really feel that way?
    He glanced at Zach, who met his eyes and then immediately looked away. Had Zach been staring? He was probably nervous about having other people read his poem. It did reveal a vulnerable side of him. Lucas read the poem again and wrote out his answers to the review questions.
    1. How do you think the author feels about this person? He is deeply in love with her. He wants her, but he hasn’t told her yet.
    2. Based on the poem, what else can you infer about the person? She doesn’t know how he feels. Or maybe she’s with someone else.
    3. What is your overall reaction to the poem? It is romantic.
    He couldn’t answer number three honestly. He couldn’t tell Zach how much his words had meant to him, how much he wanted to find a guy of his own who thought of him like that, who loved him that much.
    He knew Trish had a crush on Zach and wondered if the two of them would ever get together. She’d be lucky to have a boyfriend like Zach. Gorgeous, sensitive, loving. Would Trish appreciate the poem as much as he did? What would Zach think of the poem he’d written about Trish? Trish was nothing like the girl in Zach’s poem. In Zach’s poem, the girl seemed tender and delicate. And needy. In Lucas’s poem, Trish came across more abrasive and boisterous. And independent. He hoped he hadn’t messed up Trish’s chances with Zach.
    He risked another glance at Zach only to catch him staring again. Zach looked unhappy. He was reading Donovan’s poem. Maybe Donovan did write something gay, and Zach was disgusted by it. Maybe Zach knew Lucas was gay and was disgusted by him too. Maybe Zach was mad because he’d caught Lucas staring at him. Lucas shifted in his seat.
    When Donovan’s poem finally came around to him, Lucas stared at it in shock.
     
    L et’s meet
    U p for
    C offee
    A round
    S ix? (I promise I won’t bite—unless you’re into