When The Rich Son Falls

Twenty Eight

James came home very late that night. Topher was sure of it because he stayed up until midnight and the man had yet to come back by the time he had fallen asleep; then when he woke up around lunchtime the next day, he found food on the table, ready to be microwaved. Somewhere in between, James had come back and gone once more; and from what Topher learned from past experiences, he was beginning to suspect that he was being purposefully avoided once more.

He didn’t find it surprising anymore, given that the first time James did that was when he teased him about a hickey; so what more now that they engaged in something a lot more intense than a little teasing? He would just have to find a way around it again, although, preferably, without getting severely dehydrated and locked in a sauna room this time. So, he decided he’d go to the festival. James would surely be there, doing what James usually did—which was to help out—and he wouldn’t be able to run and hide when Topher shows up.

With his mind made up, Topher dressed to impress like the usual, even when he didn’t have any idea what kind of festival it was going to be. He put on a short-sleeved floral shirt which he didn’t bother to button up, a bandana around his neck to match, ripped jeans, and his favorite pair of sunglasses. The beach was on the bottom of the list of places he wanted to find himself in, but he’d rather die than show up looking like a fashionless blob.

Topher grabbed his keys, put on his shoes, and was ready to head out, but just as he opened the door, he found James standing right outside and about to come in. Both were clearly startled, but the look of surprise in James’s face was quickly changed into that of confusion.

“What are you doing?” he asked, looking at Topher from head to toe with a hint of judgment in his tone.

“I am headed out to go to the festival,” Topher replied with a proud smile, showing off outfit. “I look cool, right?”

James opened his mouth to speak, then decided against it. He shut his mouth before squeezing past Topher and the door to get inside. Instead of leaving, Topher went back inside and closed the door behind him.

“You came home late last night,” he said, standing by James’s bedroom door while the man began to look through his drawers. “Very late, in fact.”

“There was a lot more to do than I thought.” James pulled out a shirt and placed it in front of him as he stood in front of the mirror. “What I meant earlier was what are you doing without a mask on? Do you want people to fuss over you?”

“It’s a festival. People blend in at festivals, and everyone will be busy looking at other things instead of me.”

“You’re talking about those big music festivals for the rich. The Coachella,” James said as he took two more shirts and did the same, before deciding to go with the first one. “Where there are more famous people compared to you.”

“I’m surprised you’ve even heard of it,” Topher honestly said. Unable to keep himself from interfering, he went into the room and began to go through James’s clothes. After a second of deliberation, he pulled one out and handed it to its owner. James didn’t argue about it and simply stood by the side while Topher began to look for pants.

“The beach is full of tourists right now with phones and cameras, so mask up.”

Topher stopped and turned his head to narrow his eyes at James. “I hate that you’re policing me right now and especially because the mask just makes the air near my face warmer, but I have to admit that I do like seeing you this worried about me. It’s not bad.” When he saw James roll his eyes, he smiled and continued looking for clothes.

“It’s the town I’m worried about once news about you gets out.”

Topher walked over to James with a pair of shorts in his hands, looking like he was trying to suppress a smile. “Ah, lie more, it’s kind of turning me on, to be honest.” James took a step back when Topher didn’t stop walking. He kept moving backwards to keep a distance while Topher kept moving forward, until the back of his legs hit the edge of the desk.

“What are you doing?” James asked when Topher set the shorts aside, leaned down, and placed his hands on the desk, effectively cornering him.

Topher smiled as his eyes traveled all over James’s face, looking like he had a meal set out in front of him and he hadn’t eaten for weeks. “I’m trying to have some sexy time, if that’s not obvious,” he said, his voice quiet and low. “I thought I’d be over it after last night. You know, hit it and quit it, but I guess you’ve got more appeal than I thought. You’re like… hot chocolate—can’t get just one spoonful, got to consume the entire cup.”

For a split second, James looked like he was about to give in as his eyes dropped to Topher’s lips. Topher’s anticipation had already begun to grow, but then James bit the inside of his cheek and pushed Topher aside.

“Now’s not the time,” he strictly said, grabbing the shorts that Topher had chosen before exiting the room.

“Ah, but there will be a next time, is what you’re saying, correct?” Topher asked, looking unfazed even when James went into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. “I’ll take that as a yes or at least a maybe!”

The festival turned out to be unlike what Topher had expected. He didn’t know why he thought it would be anything like Coachella, but it wasn’t. At around 3 in the afternoon, even with the sun unapologetically reigning in the cloudless sky, the beach was full of people. Locals and visitors crowded the place—some were enjoying the water, some sat by the sand on their own blankets and foldable chairs, but most were going around a variety of stalls that offered food, souvenirs, games and other entertainment.

Topher spotted some familiar decorations, like the painted wooden sign that James was working on, and fishtail windsocks that Glory and a bunch of other people made. Some men and women sat by the sand in homemade mermaid costumes, one kid was even dressed up like the Disney version of Poseidon complete with a funny white beard. didn’t really comprehend what the volunteers were trying to make back at Linda’s house, with all their sequins, glitter, paint and paper mache; but when he saw them finished and in place, he began to somehow understand.

“Are you,” he turned to look at James with a frown, “celebrating mermaids?”

“In a way, yes. It’s called the Mermaid Festival, previously brought to our town as the Atargatis Festival.” James waved back at Mrs. Mei who had spotted him from her stall. They had just arrived—after a good 10 minutes of Topher trying to get James to wear his shirt unbuttoned so he could show off his body and look stylish at the same time. Of course, James buttoned his shirt up in the end, much to Topher’s disappointment.

“Atargatis, Atargatis…” Topher muttered as he followed him towards the entrance, to get to the stalls. “Ah, the Syrian goddess of earth, fertility and water? AKA the first mermaid.”

James stopped to look at him with obvious surprise on his face.

“Don’t look so shocked that I read sometimes.” James chuckled, flicking one of the windsocks beside him. “One of my old crushes in high school was very much into mythology. So, anyway, is she like, your goddess around here?”

“She used to be, for the seafarers that used to live here a couple of hundred years ago. They used to worship her to calm the waters and help with the tides, to keep the enemies at bay, and the people of this town safe. But then her followers dwindled with the new world, until all that’s left is the yearly tradition of this festival.”

“That’s actually pretty cool and unexpected. So, what do you do around here during the festival?”

James had to stop to engage in a back and forth of greetings with another group of people who knew his name. Then, he answered, “Make friends, play games, eat.”

“This year, James is also selling some stuff for the fundraiser,” Bruce piped in as he appeared from behind them. He held a fish-shaped bread in his hand, and wore a simple fitted shirt, shorts and flipflops—which seemed to be the go-to outfit of most of the men in that town.

Topher took a step back and shamelessly looked up at Bruce from head to toe. “Long time no see, Bruce. Can I just say for a second that you look so jacked right now?” He admired, patting Bruce’s arm to make a point. “Seriously, do you just eat chicken breasts for every meal?”

“Ignore him,” James sighed, and Bruce did. “How’s the stall?”

“A few people have already signed up, and Glory’s managed to sell some items as well.”

“That’s good. I’ll go and take over—"

“No, you won’t,” Bruce was quick to say. “You’ll go around and have fun is what you’ll be doing. She’s got it covered and I’ll take over the next shift when she gets bored.”

“But—"

“Come on, James, it’s the least we could do to help out. Go and—heck, I don’t know—show this tourist around to humanize him a little and get him off his high horse.”

“Such a sweet boy, you are,” Topher smiled at him, completely ignoring the criticism at the end.

“Or drag him to the deep shallows,” Bruce added, sounding more like a suggestion than a joke, which made James smile. “Your call.”

“I will not be going near the sand and or water, thank you very much,” Topher interrupted. “My hair is not built for that much salt.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll—we’ll go around,” James said in defeat. “But I’ll still come check out the stall after we do a round throughout the others.”

“Fine with me. See you later, boss man.” Bruce did a small nod towards James, and then to Topher, saying, “Steve,” then he disappeared into the sea of people.

“Okay, then.” Topher excitedly smiled at James. “Where shall we head to first? I’m fine with anywhere as long as it’s within the concrete floor area.” He motioned at the demarcation where the concrete stopped and the sand met, which basically gave them no choice but to go to the stalls that weren’t set up on the sand.

“Let’s go grab something to eat.”