Say it if you mean it

[Sullivan Bennett]

"Where the hell is he?" Sully asked before he stuffed a corn dog into his mouth. Normally, he wasn't a huge fan of the corn dog but when it came to festivals and events, he indulged in everything they had to offer. From funnel cakes to cotton candy in all the colors of the rainbow, he was going to eat until it made him sick. Beside him walked Kinley, who seemed less interested in eating and more obsessed with checking his phone. Sully placed a hand over the screen and tried to snatch it from him.

"Dude, what're you doing? Waiting on a call from your girlfriend?" he taunted.

Kinley pulled his phone back from Sully and shot him an irritated glare. "No." And then he mumbled something about him not understanding and he was waiting for his brother to answer his texts. Sully shrugged. Well, all right then. Maybe he should check his own phone to see what the heck Levi was up to.

Then he finally spotted him amongst the crowd goers. Sully grinned, then finished off his corn dog and tossed the stick haphazardly in the general direction of one of the garbage bins nearby. As quietly as he could, he ran for Levi and then leapt onto his back, letting out a lion's shout right in his ear.

"LEVI!"

RholyR

[Levi Yoon]

Levi was late as always he had to get his brother ready before he left it had been a long time since he was able to go out but since it was during the day he was about to leave without the baby. The fun part was getting to Portland now his mom didn't know where he was going if she knew he was going that far she would have told him no, she was too dependent on him to take care of his brother.

Levi just wanted to get out and have some fun so him, Sully, and Kinley were going to the big pride festival in Portland. It would be going on for like two weekends for the month of June. He was meeting the other he was always late so he had to go things alone or others would be waiting for him all the time. He was able to get there and he walked alone looking for his friends.

"LEVI!" He heard his name and then he was being clung onto by the one and only Sully! He spun in circles a few times with him on his back. "SULLY!!!!!!!!!!!!! I MADE IT!" She shouted excitedly back! He let Sully down so he could see his friend while they talked. Kinley was on his phone looking like he rather be somewhere else. "I thought for sure I would have to bring Eli (baby brother) with me but my mom has him. She said I deserve some time out. She also gave me 50 bucks." He bounced his eyebrows excited to have some cash and free time.

"So how long did you have to wait for me?"

[Sullivan Bennett]

"I KNOW!!! I SEE YOU!!!"

And he was being spun around. He laughed and clung onto Levi until he stopped spinning and then he hopped back down to earth. The world still spun for a moment so he clasped one of Levi's shoulder for support. It made sense that Levi was late because of his little brother. Levi's mom was always leaving her older son to take care of the baby. Sully couldn't even count how many times Levi ended up showing up with Eli because his mother left him in his care yet again. But it didn't bother him. As far as babies went, Eli wasn't a terrible one and he was fun to play with. Stuff like peekaboo and dumb faces--the kid never got tired of that.

"Not long," Sully said but he threw a look over at Kinley. "But he's been a real bore this whole time."

"...hey!" Kinley protested.

Sully tried to take the phone again but Kinley dodged his hand and stuffed his phone into his pocket, probably hoping Sully wasn't bold enough to go for it. (He was. He didn't.)

"50 bucks." Sully wiggled his eyebrows. "That's a lot of corn dogs."

"Gross," said Kinley. Sully slid his arm around Levi's shoulders and they started in the direction of the parade itself.

"Dude, you should see it. There are guys in rainbow thongs."

[Levi Yoon]

"I SEE YOU TOO." He got silly when he was with Sully. He was about the only one he did this with he wasn't too friendly with other and the touchy-feely way he was with Sully. If Kinley tired it he would have pushed him away. He wasn't comfortable with just anyone.

"Good, I hate making you guys wait on me." He would cancel on friends if he had Eli but he never canceled on Sully he was the only one he trusted around his baby brother. He giggled at Kinley's response and that he thought Sully would let him keep his phone. See Sully was the hands-on guy with just about any and everyone. He didn't know what personal space was and Levi would only allow him to because he had the title "best friend."

"Corn dogs and games!" He was sure Kinley would like the games. He welcomed Sullivan's arm he even pulled him closer as they walked. He didn't want any other guys thinking he was available, even though he was. But he was claiming him tonight. 

"Oh My God! Are you for serious! just a rainbow thong? I feel overdressed now." He joked. He was wearing a tie-dye shirt with white skinny jeans that were distressed with holes in the knees.

[Sullivan Bennett]

"Games! I wonder if they have those fish bowl games."

They had them at a lot of carnivals and festivals but would they be here at the pride festival? Maybe if the bowls were rainbow colors. Now Sully was curious. He knew some of the games were pretty inappropriate but those ones weren't where the kids could see them. Like, there was a game where you could throw rings on dildos. Ahem. Sully, being immature and boyish, had laughed when he saw that.

Kinley made a face as he looked at Levi, probably imagining him in a rainbow thong. To that, Sully laughed again.

"Aren't we all?" All three of them could be classified as over-dressed. Kinley was wearing a black tank top, black jeans, and had a camo jacket tied around his skinny little waist. And Sully was in a white t-shirt with a rainbow painted over it, an unbuttoned plaid over-shirt, blue jeans, and a black cap on his head.

"Wait, wait, wait~" Sully skipped up ahead a couple of steps over to a drag queen passing out boas. He grabbed a bright cookie monster blue one and came trotting back with it. A mischievous smile crossed his face. Kinley immediately hid behind Levi but he wasn't the target.

"Now look at you!" Sully said as he held onto the ends of the boa and threw it around the back of Levi's neck. "All ready."

[Levi Yoon]

"I'm sure they do, what are you trying to win pet fish? I am sure they have those rainbow guppies instead of goldfish." Levi held onto Sully not wanting to be separated now that they got to hang out. They bumped hips and held hands while they walked and Kinely trailed next to them. Levi giggled when he saw the dildo ring toss. He was out of his element for sure.

Levi slapped Sullivan for laughing at him and then slapped Kinley for looking at him like that. "Don't either of you get any idea's no rainbow thong for me."

Smiling coyly as Sully came back with the blue boa he expected the gift from his best friend. Kinley escaped him that time but Levi was going to be ready next time and dodge him. Sadly they would end up all going home dressed in drag and Levi's mom was sure to flip Sully's parents would even question him. Levi really wished he was part of there family Sully had it so good he had great parents.

Lately, Levi hated his life and fought to keep going each day. Eli's smiling face kept him going he had to love him and in order to do that he needed to be around so he pushed through the hard times.

"What about you two?" He pouted at Sully as he held onto the boa, "What if we all wear blue boas?" The drag queen was walking away and Levi pouted in the attempt for him to go get them.

[Sullivan Bennett]

"No, sadly, I don't think they last too long."

He knew from experience, actually. When he was like ten, he won a goldfish at a carnival and it promptly died on him two days later. He cried for hours, unconsolable over the death of the new pet he was sure he'd have until he died. (Hey, he was a kid. He didn't know things then, okay?)

Sully took his slap like a man but Kinley used one of his long legs to kick Levi back in retribution. Sully laughed. Typical of his friends. His smile was lopsided as Levi pouted over being the only one of the trio wearing a silly blue boa.

"Do they have to be blue?" he asked, stepping backwards. "We could be like power rangers. All different colors." He turned and trotted after the escaping drag queen so he could ask for two more boas. These ones were unfortunately not colors he would have chosen himself. The drag queen just handed them over with a tittering laugh before moving on.

"I'm taking purple!" Sully said immediately as he pushed the pink one into Kinley's face. He looked over at Levi. "Guess you're the manliest one of us now."

[Levi Yoon]

"Yeah, I think they are stressed out or they buy all the sick ones at a discount and make us pay an arm and a leg for them." Levi new they never lived long after but he could be wrong and someone could own a goldfish from a fair for ten years for all he knew. He didn't like fish himself much they were cool but he didn't want any.

Levi then remembered Sully had a goldfish for a minute and he felt bad for bringing it up. They were kids but it wasn't too long ago. Darwin was his name of the goldfish from the cartoon Gumball so Sally thought it was clever to name his goldfish Darwin too.

"Hey, you're going to dirty my pants.!" He yelled at Kinley and swatted at him for trying to dirty his pants. "No, I guess not but I thought the Blue Boys." He said as Sully walked backward. He returned with pink and purple. Sully took purple and left Kinley with pink. That's if he even wears it. He was so into his phone Levi didn't know if he was going to join the fun or not.

"I thought I always was?" He joked with Sully. He was so hands on Levi didn't know where they stood sometimes.

[Sullivan Bennett]

Those fish were definitely stressed out, no denying that. There probably should have been a law against abusing fish the way they did but people didn't tend to treat fish with as much care as the fuzzy animal types.

"Well, why'd you wear white?" Kinley retorted before he had a boa thrust into his face. A moment later, he sneezed. Sully wrapped his boa around his neck and tried to look as sassy as possible. He walked like a model in front of the other two before turning around with a "fierce" model face, one hand on his hip. He winked playfully at the other two. Mostly at Levi. Kinley only rolled his eyes before he reluctantly slid the pink boa around the back of his neck.

"Nope," Sully said. "That's me." He was manlier than Levi! For sure!

"My parents would kill me if they saw me now," Kinley said.

[Levi Yoon]

"Because they look good on my why else?" Kinley's sneeze was quite but didn't go unnoticed. Sully was making a scene like he always did when they were in public. It's like having all those siblings makes him want to stand out more. Well, that's how Levi saw it. Sully's wink made Levi blush. He tried to act like it wasn't directed at him and it was to both of them.

Quickly replying, " My, dad would kill me too." He kicked himself for bringing up his dad, but he loved the man. It had only been a year on the 10th. Yeah, he kept track of that. He hoped he would come back and everything would go back to the way it was before his brother was born. But then he sees Ely's smile and he wouldn't change it for the world, Plus it was his dad that was missing out. Not them.

They knew not to talk about his dad and it was a sore subject but it was open for discussion if he brought it up? Right? DId he have a right to get upset if it did? "But that's why none of them know we are here right? I'm staying at Sully's, Sully is staying at Kinley's and Kinely is staying at My place." He said it super fast because he was nervous they would get caught. This was not like Levi to lie to his mother.

[Sullivan Bennett]

"Mhm," he said to himself with a mischievous nod. What? He agreed with Levi--he looked good in those tight, white pants. He glanced over the area where Kinley had kicked him and it looked like Levi got off lucky. At the moment, Kinley's shoes weren't dirty. Surprising, given how much time Kinley spent being a nosy little shit and getting into trouble in the woods behind the school. Back during the big storm, Sully heard that Kinley was out there, worrying his parents half to death. Hard not to know, since Kinley's parents called his parents asking where he was.

See, Sully got away with flirting because Levi didn't stop him. It was almost like Levi liked the attention but didn't fully grasp the meaning of it. After all, Sully was kind of a touchy-feely guy. Levi wasn't but he still let Sully get away with pretty much murder. The mention of dads made Sully cut his gaze back toward Levi. He could have kicked Kinley in the nads for bringing up dads right now. But it was true. Both of them had dads that would murder them for being out here. Not just in Portland but at a gay pride parade. Meanwhile, Sully thought of his parents as pretty open-minded. After all, they adopted kids from all over the world and provided love and shelter. It wasn't like they cared if those kids turned out gay as hell.

"Hey, my parents would be cool with the parade part," Sully interjected. "Just not, you know, the going out of town without them part."

[Levi Yoon]

Kinley was odd but weren't they all a little odd? He was a mean one for sure but they were boys and hurting each other was just what they did to each other. He dusted the area and is pants were still nice and white. Kinley didn't succeed in leaving in footprint on him.

After he said what he did he just stood there lost in thought for a moment. He wondered what his dad was doing now and where he was. He hoped he was happy. His mood went from happy to sad in a matter of seconds. He had a sick feeling in his stomach now the more he thought about his dad.

"I wish I had your parents..." He said in a bitter tone. Really Sullivan had it the best out of all of them. It wasn't a contest he just wanted to be happy and the life he was living now was not too happy he was not living for himself anymore and it took soo much out of him. It was nice to get out and just be a kid again. It sicked his mom but this on him she made it his burden. He was part of the family so he had to step it up he could walk out like id Father, no never even if he felt like it.

Levi went from happy pappy to sad and sulky he pulled the boa off and wrapped it around his hand. He felt guilty for not being home helping his mother with his baby brother and getting ready for the next day. How was he supposed to have fun while he was worried about what was going on at home without him? What if his mom brings home a guy and he hurts Eli?

And this is why he was always home and living in his safe zone. He wanted nothing more than to leave now, to go home. He forgot how to have fun and live for himself.

[Sullivan Bennett]

"Me too," Kinley said.

Sully shrugged and smiled, despite their negativity. Yeah, he had great parents but if they wanted to talk birth parents, well... Sully really was lucky and sometimes he admittedly took that for granted. At the moment, he was just grateful they weren't up his butt asking where he was (because they thought he was with a friend at their house--hah!)

But something was definitely going through Levi's mind, since he went from smiles to grump-face in a matter of moments. Sully raised his brows as Levi pulled his boa off. Looking around for somebody that was giving them dirty looks, Sully tried to detect the reason for it. Kinley was still wearing his, even if he was still periodically checking his phone like a mad man.

Sully sighed and then slid an arm around each boy's shoulders and pulled them in closer.

"Come on, guys. This is supposed to be a festival so let's have a good time!"

[Levi Yoon]

"How?" Levi said dryly it's not like they knew what it was to look after a baby, the worry he carried was heavy. His feet felt like brinks and he just wanted to be home with Eli. Sullivan was his best friend but he still couldn't share this with him. He felt like he was killing the mood was he supposed to fake he was happy? For the sake of his friends? That's what friends did right looked out for them and did what it took to make them happy. to be selfless?

Could he be selfless today or was he going to let anger get the best of him? The anger took over he was not being the good friend today he was making it all about him and the way he felt right now! "Why did we even come here? There is nothing to do here we aren't kids anymore." He was pushing his friends away rather than opening up about the way he was feeling. He regretted leaving he was scared of being so far from Eli.

He continued to let Sully hang his arm on him but he was being negative he couldn't see any positive in being out right now. Closing himself off.

[Sullivan Bennett]

"...well..."

Sully didn't know what to do with the pair of rain clouds on either side of him. One was obsessed with phone and the other was clearly mulling over some serious shit. Meanwhile, there was Sully, in the middle, arms around his friends from school, feeling increasingly stupid with his stupid smile and his stupid kick in his step and his stupid strong will. He would smile until the day he was dead, because he was pretty sure if he stopped smiling, the other two were going to die.

"We don't have to do festival stuff if the people are making you crazy. Like there's the Japanese garden. It's super awesome. Either of you been there? Not a lot of people, peaceful."