Bishop: A True Lover's Story

When it was his turn at the window, the woman asked him for the nature of his visit.

“I need full STD testing, HIV too,” Bishop said loud enough so she could hear him through the glass partition.

“For fuck’s sake,” Trent groaned, covering his face when several people in the large waiting area glanced in their direction.

Bishop chuckled when he took the clipboard and his number in the order that he’d be called. “What’s up with you? You knew why I was here.”

Trent walked briskly to a row of vacant chairs all the way at the back of the room, trying to avoid eye contact with anyone. When Bishop sat next to him, Trent yanked the clipboard out of his hand and began to scribble Bishop’s information in the required fields. “I know that. But, it looks like we’re here… together, dude. Like we’re both here to get tested before we fuck.”

Bishop looked at Trent as if he was insane. “Most of the people in here are getting the same thing, Trent. Besides who cares?” Bishop leaned farther back in the hard plastic, blue chair and spread his legs wide.

Trent kept writing with his head ducked low. “They probably think you’re making me get on PREP or some shit.”

Bishop’s burst of laughter made even more people turn in their direction. He nodded at a few of them, not caring what any of those strangers were thinking. He was there because he was ready to take the next step with his boyfriend soon and this was the responsible thing to do, so why the hell was Trent tripping?

“Last time you had sex was before prison?” Trent said, frowning at a section littered with check boxes.

Bishop exhaled. “Yeah, just say six years.”

“Shit, that’s a long ass time.” Trent chuckled. “Those nurses probably won’t believe you back there.”

“I don’t give a fuck. I just need them to do the test.”

After Bishop turned in the completed forms he went and sat beside Trent after giving him a dap with his fist. “Thanks man. I know this ain’t what you wanna do on a Saturday afternoon, but I appreciate it, for real.” Bishop picked at a scab on his knuckle. “You know if I could do it myself I…”

“I know, man.” Trent leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees with his head in his hands. “I wasn’t trying to be a dick. You know I got your back.”

“Yeah.”

“Hey, I’m still dropping you off at your school Tuesday morning, right?” Trent changed the subject.

“Yep.” Bishop wrung his hands together. His first fucking day of school wasn’t until next Tuesday, but he was still nervous about the orientation. Mike had done a great job with teaching him how to get online—making the laptop less frustrating than it seemed—to pull up the Adult Learning Center’s virtual classroom, where he’d have to take weekly tests and participate in group discussions.

“You’re really doing a lot for Edison, man. You like this guy that much?” Trent eyed him suspiciously.

“I like him… I do. And, I’m not just doing it for him.”

“I know. You’ve always talked about going back to school.” Trent shrugged. “But, when you got home you put it on the back burner for a while.”

“I was nervous, that’s all.”

“And now you’re not?”

Hell yeah, I am. Bishop was terrified. But, nothing in life worth having ever came easy, Wood used to say. He wanted to be a good man for Edison, but that wasn’t all he wanted to be. He wanted to prove to himself that he’d had the smarts all along, he’d just never applied himself. “I am, man. But, I’m not afraid of hard work.”

“But you’re afraid of Edison finding out, aren’t you?”

“Only before I get the chance to tell him first.”

“Bishop. Then you need to do it.”

Bishop didn’t say anything else. Instead he stewed in silence beside his best friend and waited for his number to be called. As he sat there thinking about it, he doubted there’d ever be a perfect time to tell Edison that he was boyfriends with a first-grade student. He just needed to get some schooling under his belt to show Eddie that it may be like this now, but it wouldn’t always. He’d show and prove, that was something he knew how to do.

Chapter Forty

Edison

Edison ran his hand over his plain blue tie as he tried to remember if Presley had updated the latest version of the motion she’d been working on before she’d hightailed it out of the office as if she’d just hit the mega millions. It was Boss Appreciation Day and he’d given Presley a gold deluxe spa package at Le Croix Salon on the oceanfront. And because she was one of the most prominent attorneys in Hampton Roads, they’d gotten her in today. Edison knew she’d adore the gift, but he hadn’t thought she’d fly out of the office and leave him with all the work. He was so flustered, his hands flying over the keyboard at least five hundred strokes per minute as he tried to catch up.