"I'M SORRY, TRICK. I CAN'T TELL YOU, BUT… I CAN SHOW YOU."

What the hell! Of all the responses I can hear from Fei, this was really his answer?

I acted defensively. "No, no! I don't mean that! It's just that… I, ah… I'm sorry! It was so rude of me. Please forget about it."

Fei snickered, as if embarrassing me was really pleasuring him. "You know what, Trick, I didn't expect you to be this fast, but hey, I can catch your drift."

Oh, my goodness. Is he serious?

Does this mean… he's also…

"Wait… What do you mean?"

"Oh, come on, Trick," Fei moved closer to me. "What do you think about me, getting back to you to correct my name? What do you think about me, going back to the shop to see you? What do you think about me, willing to catch your drift? Excitedly, on that note. Heck, if you can remember a while ago, I told you that I'm yours."

I cleared my throat. "Uh, you mean…"

"I'm into you, Trick. As simple as that," he then touched the tip of my nose. "Now, my sister needs me now, so I gotta go. I'm sure we will see each other again."

I can't lift my feet. I couldn't open my mouth. I was petrified at that moment.

He's into me!

He was smiling as he walks away from where I am standing right now. Here came Jermaine and Oakley proudly showing me their checks that are amounting to two thousand dollars together. I just smiled at them, but from afar, my attention is where Fei is right now.

Everything was so sudden. Now, I'm beginning to ask. Why did he like me? What did he see in me? Why does everything happen so fast? We just met today!

Earth to Trick!

"So, are you ready to get wasted?" Oakley asked.

"Yeah, sure. Let's go," I replied. "Jermaine, you should come with us."

"Nah, maybe next time. Have a great night, fellas!" Jermaine bade goodbye, as he won't be able to join us.

From Upper Manhattan, we drove to Brooklyn for roughly an hour… only to go to this club called…

"Really, Oaks? Here at Overture?" I reacted. I totally know this place! This is one of the clubs that the House of Sylvanie goes to celebrate every time we get a trophy!

"Erm… Please save your judgment right now, Trick. I mean, I told you earlier that I am not gonna judge you if you like Fei because we're kinda alike in that sense, are you getting me?" Oakley expressed.

"I am not sure what you're talking about, Oaks," Still, I am confused.

"My girlfriend works here," said Oakley as he pointed towards the entrance.

I nodded. "O… kay?"

"Okay? We good?" Oakley affirmed.

"Yeah, man. She's got a job. What's wrong with that?"

Oakley put his arm across my shoulder. "All right. Let's go!"

We went to the club. Oh, how I miss my house mother and siblings once more. It still looked the same since we've been here a couple of months ago.

"Yo, Rakisha, baby!" Oakley shouted.

I got so surprised. "What?"

"Hey, baby! I miss you so much!" Rakisha, who is a drag queen, shouted, as she goes near us.

"Oh, my goodness. Rakisha! How are you?" I greeted her.

"If it isn't Patrick Sylvanie of the legendary House of Sylvanie! Aaaah!" Rakisha yelled. "How's it going, boo? Oh, f/uck. I'm so sorry about your loss. I've heard about Mama Oleander a couple of months ago."

"Wait, wait, wait. You know each other?" Oakley was astounded.

"Damn right, baby. Their house is the one not to be f/ucked in the community. Unfortunately, they're gone now," Rakisha spoke.

"So… Are we still good, Trick?" Oakley probably thinks that I'm gonna judge him because…

"Come on, Oaks. Your girlfriend, who is a proud transsexual, is one of the most celebrated drag queens here. I'm proud to be a friend of this fine lady here," I stated.

Oakley heaved a sigh. "I thought you would freak out that my girlfriend is a tranny."

"Hey! People should freak out because I'm a freak of nature, baby!" Rakisha confidently shouted, until her voice changed, more like the tone became sassy. "By the way, Tricky, where's Miss Conflagration? I haven't seen that bitch here in the bar for a week now. Is she taking those cheap-ass gigs elsewhere?"

I grinned. Of course, I knew what happened between Rakisha and Ellis. They were great rivals in the categories. I would say that they are in the same levels of drag, fashion, and talent.

"She's at home, resting. She had a show last night in Staten Island," I replied.

"Tell her to prepare, 'cause I'm going to destroy her flames," Rakisha threatened. "Anyway, drinks are on me. Tell Mikey on the bar I got your first shot."

"That's why I love you, baby. By the way, I got a surprise for you!" Oakley handed the red envelope to Rakisha and she screamed at the top of her lungs once she saw the amount.

We went to the bar and had our first shot. Oakley was really thankful that I would understand his situation. It was actually his first time to have a tranny girlfriend. I told him that I see a lot of them every day, so it's nothing new to me. What's new to me is...

"Hey, I see you talking to Fei earlier at the party. What's the score now?" Oakley queried.

I blew raspberries before replying to him. "You wouldn't believe it, Oaks. He said that he's into me."

"What?" Oakley clamored. "That's great news, buddy!"

I sighed. "What's great about it? Look at him. Look at me. We're totally opposites. He's super rich. I'm poorer than a mouse."

"I don't know if you have heard this phrase but 'opposites attract', Trick."

I sighed. "Also, it's too soon. It's less than 24 hours that we've seen each other."

"And what's wrong with that? Both of you felt something toward each other. Don't you deny it. It's been messing with you in the past few hours."

Oakley is right. I can't get Fei out of my head. His smile, his laughter, his handsome face, his naughtiness, his everything. I get too excited to see him in the flesh, as if I wanted him to be with me all the time.

And the thing is… I can't explain why this is all I'm feeling. It's messing with my entire system.

"Does it mean that I'm also into him?"

"Maybe," Oakley responded. "You're the only one who can decide on that, Trick. And while you're still thinking about it, let's have a shot!"

That we did. Oakley and I ordered some more drinks. We talked more about each other and discovered a lot of things. I would say that he's really a wonderful guy.

We stayed there until midnight, until we both decided to part ways. Since Oakley is too drunk to drive, Rakisha drove for him and took him home. I, on the other hand, booked an Uber X back to Ellis's pad in Queens.

I can feel the numbness in my body, but I can still walk. I can still see the surroundings well. Just a little sleepy too. I guess I developed a high tolerance for alcohol now, or I learned to drink various booze in the same color.

When the driver dropped me off on the sidewalk, I walked towards the entrance to the building. At that moment, I felt like all the alcohol in my body evaporated. Why?

"Hey, Trick."

It was Fei, standing in front of the entrance, holding a bouquet of white flowers. He looked very dapper in a hoodie, jeans, and sneakers.

"Fei?" I uttered with my eyes squinting.

"I told you we're gonna see each other again. I have something for you." He handed me the flowers. I tried to smell them but the fragrance was faint. Probably the effect of the alcohol.

"Are these roses?"

"Lilies of the valley, actually," he corrected.

"Oh, lilies. Nice. You know what, no one has ever given me flowers before," I confessed, as I took the flowers.

"I'm honored to be the first one," Fei said. "Oh, you're drunk."

"I am. So… Are we going to have sex tonight?" I straightforwardly questioned.

Fei giggled. "You wanna do it?"

"I don't know. I'm drunk. Can I get hard?"

Fei laughed, even though I'm not trying to be funny. "I'm not sure, but if you wanna know, we can find it out together, if you want."

"Hmmm… Maybe not, but… I think I wanna go somewhere." I don't even understand myself, sometimes. Don't be weirded out.

"I think I know a place. We can go somewhere without moving an inch where we're standing. Are you ready?"

I never dared to ask what he meant by that, but I would be asking a lot of things now, especially when the entire world changed with the click of his fingers.