Read Before I Break for Free Online Page B

population, was actually pretty large in size. The school had a big Theatre Department, doing about three to four plays or musicals every year. The gym was also good in size, and we had most of our games here. The football field in the back, opposite of the parking lot, was the biggest thing of all, and I surely hoped that I could get on the team again.
    Or did I?
    Football seemed important to do during the summer, but now that school started, I wondered if I even wanted to. A bunch of guys throwing a ball and tackling each other in an open field didn’t sound too pleasing anymore. But East Hill required at least one extra-curricular activity, so what would I do? It was still early to think about that, though, and I had a few weeks to come up with something.
    I sat in the parking lot for about twenty more minutes as more cars started pulling it. Melissa was only able to drive to school on Wednesday, her father’s day off, and on the weekends for cheer practice. Most of the time she got a ride from either a friend or me, but as I expected, she was driving herself. She pulled into the parking lot with father’s car, a silver 2007 Honda Accord, and when she saw my car, she got out, walking over to it. Climbing into the passenger seat, she glared at me. “What do you want, Hayes?”
    Whenever she was upset with me, she tended to call me by my last name. I honestly thought it was kind of cute. “Come on, ‘Lissa, don’t be like that. I have some news.”
    “Unless you suddenly decided to stop being a homophobic asshole about my friends, I don’t want to hear it.” When I smiled, her eyes widened in surprise. “You stopped being a homophobic asshole? That’s not possible.”
    “It’s true,” I told her. “You know that new guys, Avery? He’s gay! And he and I are friends. We went out last night so I could show him around Town Centre.”
    Melissa smirked at my comment. “Really? You went out with Avery? What was it, some kind of date?”
    “Of course not! He’s a really good friend, though, and it surprised me. He’s so…I don’t know…” Lying probably wasn’t the best tactic, but I really didn’t have much of a choice. And I planned on being friends with him anyway, once all of this calmed down.
    Right?
    “Not gay?” Melissa chimed in. “Not all gay men act like women. Only the ones that I feel like that’s who they are. Everyone is different, Cyril, and I am glad you’re seeing that. I just think it’s strange timing, don’t you? And if he is gay, I bet he feels all alone, don’t you think? He really needs a friend, probably. You should feel lucky he opened up to you.”
    Not understanding, I said, “What do you mean?” The strange part was, the timing was odd. One day I’m arguing with Melissa about her gay friend, and then Avery just so happens to be gay and I actually enjoy spending time with him? If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought this was all a joke.
    Melissa took a hold of my hand and smiled sadly. “Sometimes gay people go through a lot more than us. Last year I did a research paper about the stresses of homosexuality, and I discovered a lot of interesting facts, one being that almost 40% of homeless youth are in the LGBT category.”
    “LGBT?”
    She sighed. “You really don’t know anything, do you? LGBT stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. Sometimes they add a Q.”
    “What is the Q for? Queer?” I asked, almost laughing at the thought.
    “Actually, yes, sometimes it does.”
    Oh God, she was serious. “Why?”
    “A queer is anyone in support or a part of LGBT’s but doesn’t fall into one of those categories.” I must have looked as confused as I felt because she laughed. “I know, that was my reaction when I did my paper and saw that queer was used as one of the Q’s.”
    “One of them?”
    “The other stands for ‘questioning,’” she went on. “That one is pretty self-explanatory. Anyone who isn’t sure or is questioning their