What's a bear to do.
"I know what you are."
The words echoed throughout his head over and over again as he looked
at the computer screen. A cold sweat broke out across his forehead as
he panicked a bit. How could anyone know his secret? The bear thought
he was good at hiding his true "issue" per se. The fact that he liked
those of his own sex instead of the norm. Hell, he even played sports
and was considered a jock for gods sake. Apparently he hadn't done a
good enough job if someone knew. Kevin rubbed a large oversized paw
over his forehead, feeling a stress headache coming on. What would he
do if anyone else found out? His parents would be crushed, without a
doubt. And what about his friends? They'd de-friend him in a second.
Who wants to be affiliated with a fag?
He ran that big paw through his dirty blond hair, cropped short
because of the ease, and sighed audibly before growling underneath his
breath. A loud low grumble. The bear was a typical specimen; very
strong and muscled but with a slight outward protrusion at his
midsection. A slight gut if you will. His dark brown fur stood out
starkly against his blue eyes. He stood at about six and a half feet
tall, and his hulking figure usually made him quite noticeable in a
crowd. What he had over people in size didn't show in his demeanor.
Shy and yet outgoing when he wanted to be around the right group of
friends, he was constantly pestered by his guy friends as to why he
didn't have a girlfriend yet. They noticed that he wouldn't even check
the females out, but chalked it up due to his apparent shyness.
"Fuck..." was the only response the ursine could muster, his mind
blank with what to do next or how to respond. The chat message was
from someone he barely knew, and yet he was expected to just open up
right then and there? It was from Bruce, his fathers friend from his
singing, and while Kevin had to admit he was nice to look at and was
part of a fantasy or two for him in the past, he just didn't know if
it was a good idea to open up to someone he didn't know personally.
His large paws typed something out in the chat window before he thought
better of it and erased it quickly. Slamming the desk with a loud
thud, he sat back for a second before typing in a short message in
response.
"And what is that? What do you know about me?"
Sitting back, he had to sneer at his witty response. Playing dumb
usually worked because people ended up being unsure of themselves once
they were confronted with such an answer. The icon that showed the other person was typing flashed in the screen, and he felt a drop in the pit of his stomach, knowing that it probably was about exactly what he dreaded; his sexuality that he had fought so hard to repress and hide.
"Oh, I know you know what I mean. I want you to say it. I can tell you that you're going to have a lot of fun. To be honest, I'm shocked."
The bear wiped his nose a bit, snuffling in shock because it was exactly as he feared. Someone was onto him. Well, he would be crazy to think that he could keep the hiding gig up forever. It was just delusional, and he knew that he would eventually have to come out and tell the world. But now? The bear wasn't so sure. So he decided to be very vague in his response, mostly as a last ditch effort to steer the conversation back towards tame, boring and predictable subjects. His paws made the familiar clatter of keys as he formulated his response to the older ursine.
"You're shocked about what? I still have no idea." Kevin broke out into a cold sweat, knowing that the lame response he had just entered in via text was not going to stop him. His heart felt like it was in his throat, and its beating made a steady staccato against his chest. He took a deep shaky breath and waited as the inquisitor typed out his rebuttal.
"Don't play stupid with me. I know you know what Im talking about, and enough of this vague tip-toeing around it. I want you to say it. Say what you are, Kevin."
Kevin groaned and laid his head on the desk for a second. Never in his deepest thoughts would he have thought it would be a confrontation via facebook that forced him out of the closet. His ears and cheeks were tinged a slight red hue under his fur, a slight blush of embarrassment and sheepishness at being caught. He knew he had to give up the fight, and his shaky digits typed out his statement. For some reason, he decided it was best his own ears heard the news as well, so as he pressed enter, he also said it out loud.
"I'm gay." His ears perked at this, not because of what he had said, but because of footsteps behind him and an audible gasp from a voice he knew all too well.
"You're WHAT?"
To be continued.