Out on the street in front of the arena, a cameraman hovering discreetly in the background, Adam took stock. Something felt… odd. It was several minutes of watching the people hurrying past before he was able to put a finger on what it was.
No one was looking at him. No semi-discreet sideways glances, no double-takes. No one seemed to even notice he was there other than to step around him and continue on their way. After a lifetime of being under the microscope, Adam didn’t know what to think.
The cameraman cleared his throat and Adam twitched. Right, he had a job to do. He stepped forward at random, offering a passerby a smile.
“Excuse me—”
The woman looked him up and down, took a quick step sideways, and disappeared into the crowd.
Okay then.
Adam glanced around for his next target. “Hi there,” he said to a middle-aged woman with a teenage boy beside her. “I’m with the Wolverines organization, we’re conducting a public poll on recent changes in the team, would you like to answer a few questions?”
The woman’s eyebrows went up. She glanced at her son, who shrugged.
“Sure,” she said. “Clancy? He’s the real hockey fan,” she said to Adam.
The boy rolled his eyes but moved forward.
Adam gave him a smile. “Overall, how do you think the Wolverines are doing?”
“Could be better,” Clancy said.
“How?”
“Their defense is weak,” Clancy said. “You’ve got a couple of good ones, like that Kano kid—” Who’s ten years older than you, Adam thought, amused. “—He’s got talent but he needs seasoning. Experience. If it were me, I’d bust him back to the Freeze, let him get some conditioning with them for awhile.”
“And what about their forwards?” Adam asked, nodding seriously.
Clancy’s eyes lit up. “Hideki’s incredible. He’s got serious moves.”
It was true, he did.
“What about the rookie, Caron?”
Clancy shrugged. “He’s got potential. Needs to work on strength and endurance—he’s fast, but his stamina’s not great.”
“Yeah, I need to work on that,” Adam agreed, pulling off the wig. Mother and son’s mouths fell open in an identical expression of shock as Adam grinned. “Thanks for your input. I’ll put in some more time on building my endurance.”
“You—you’re—”
The cameraman hurried forward and held out a Wolverines shirt, which Adam took. Pulling the sharpie from his pocket, he signed the shirt and handed it to Clancy.
“See you at the next game?”
Clancy’s mouth opened and closed. Adam couldn’t help his laugh. “Take the shirt, kid. Go tell your friends about the time you told Adam Caron to up his game.”
Clancy blushed fiery red. “I’m—I didn’t mean—”
Adam waved that off, holding out a hand. Clearly dazed, Clancy took it.
“Good meeting you, Clancy,” Adam said.
After a quick moment inside away from prying eyes to readjust his wig and make sure none of Kelly’s hard work had been compromised, Adam went back to it.
He spent several hours getting footage with the cameraman, talking to as many people as he could. The moment when he revealed himself was fun the first few times, but then it began to pall, and then chafe. By the time he was done, he was irritable, frustration making his shoulders tight. He forced a smile for the last interviewee and went back to Kelly with relief. When she was done, he gave her a quick hug and a signed baseball cap but didn’t linger.
He hadn’t had time to text Etienne all day. There were several messages on his phone when he got in the car and gave the driver his address.
Eggy’s in a mood about something. Rudy won’t meet anyone’s eyes and everyone’s tense.
Adam scowled. Coach Eglanton didn’t deserve the title, from what he’d heard about him.
You should have seen the save Logan just made. Thing of beauty.
Adam smiled. It had taken a while for Etienne to get to this point—where he’d text Adam random nonsense throughout the day simply for the joy of sharing his feelings about something. Adam loved it, seeing Etienne emerging from the careful shell he’d put up around himself.
I’m free, he sent back. Have you eaten?
Waiting for you, Etienne replied. I’m on my way to your place now.
At his building, Adam tipped the driver and hurried for the stairs, unwilling to wait for the elevator.
Etienne was leaning against the wall when Adam appeared. He straightened, a smile blooming across his face. Adam caught his breath and walked into his arms. He put his head on Etienne’s chest, listening to his heartbeat as Etienne held him.
“You okay?”
Adam shook his head and lifted a shoulder. “Yes. No. I don’t—”
“Inside,” Etienne said.
He shepherded Adam gently through the door and into the bedroom, settling him on the bed before sitting down facing him.
“What is it?”
Adam blew out a breath and held out his phone. “I did the thing.”
Etienne inspected the selfie Adam had taken of himself in full makeup, his eyebrows rising. “This doesn’t look like you at all,” he said, smiling. “Did you have fun?”
“At first.” Adam accepted the phone back and shoved it in his pocket. “But after a while, it kind of… I don’t know. It started to grate.”
“What did? Being ugly?”
“No,” Adam said. “No, the way people treated me. They—” He hesitated. “It’s going to sound really shallow.”
Etienne squeezed his hand. “Say it anyway.”
“They didn’t see me,” Adam said. “Not me. It was like—they’d look at me, realize I wasn’t attractive, and immediately dismiss me as not worth their time.”
“Not something you’re used to, huh?” Etienne sounded sympathetic and a little amused.
“It’s not that,” Adam protested. “It’s—this is what you meant, isn’t it? You said… you said you’re invisible, until you’re not. Is this what you were talking about?”
“Yeah.” Etienne no longer sounded amused.
“It’s stupid,” Adam burst out. “It’s fucking awful, that people are this shallow. If anything, you should get mobbed every time you walk out the door, not me, because you’re the beautiful one, goddammit!”
Etienne sighed and reached out, gathering Adam into his arms. “First of all, I’d hate that. Secondly, that’s just how people are, Cary. We’re shallow as shit.”
“You’re not,” Adam said, pushing away enough to meet Etienne’s eyes. “You see me. Not—” He gestured vaguely at himself. “Whatever this is, but me. You always have, ever since we met.”
“Oh no,” Etienne said, lips twitching. “I thought you were hot as fuck long before we met. Don’t go thinking I’m not shallow.”
“But you still—” Adam scowled, trying to find the words. “It’s like you don’t care. Like my outsides don’t matter because you like my insides. That sounds weird but you know what I mean.”