The Romantic Woods

Billy Watson was a real man’s man. He never encountered anyone else in the woods. He wasn’t shy per se, but he wasn’t the most outgoing person either. Billy was just…Billy. He had left everything behind after his friend, Marcus, committed suicide. The one regret that Billy had was that he never told Marcus he loved him. To spare his own life, he chopped wood outside of his cabin. The anger bleeded through him, tears springing down his face. But he wiped them as quickly as possible so that no one (or nothing) would see him.

Inside of his cabin were pictures of his family and friends. His mother, Margaret “Maggie” Watson was a phenomenal, talented writer, whereas his father, John “Jack” Watson, was a pharmacist. Billy loved and envied the fact that his parents had been together the fact that his parents had been together for 47 years. How could two souls in Living College find each other and be able to be with each other for that long? That would be a mystery that Billy would never solve. He used to believe in the idea of soulmates. Now he was cynical about it. His dog, Bobby, was being good, resting near the fireplace. He was now 40, the age where people still ask him “Why are you single at this age?”

He made up excuses over time. “I got a job offer.” “I want to find myself.” “I’m a commitment-phobic person.” But the tragic truth was, he was nowhere near ready to go back to the dating market again. Marcus’s death had only occurred five years ago, and there would be nothing that would close that ache in his beating heart. But there were other reasons why Billy wanted to go live in the forest far away from his Connecticut friends. He realized that they weren’t the same friends that he knew from his college days. Other than Monica, the girl he had had a crush on since high school, she was the only one who still stayed in touch with him. Yet, he still remembered he saw her in the vacant high school hallways. She had dark brown skin, ebony eyes, and a beanie hat on her own head.

Despite the chemistry between them, they had always dated other people. One evening, Billy decided to take a nap. About twenty minutes later, he heard a tapping on the door. I wonder who could be knocking on the door at this hour, he thought to himself.

He went to the door and was surprised to find Marcus in front of him.

“I thought you were dead, man. What the fuck?”

Billy felt the color drain from his face.

“I can explain, Billy. Babe—”

“Don’t ‘Babe’ me,” said Billy. “You were dead. We were all at your funeral. Your mother and I were crying inconsolably together. And now you’re back?! You better have a good reason for coming back into my life.”

Both of the men were silent now. A few moments later, Marcus spoke up.

“It started as a dare. I was being cyberbullied and my thoughts went to dark areas.”

“For being gay? I thought you had come out three years ago.”

“Yeah, well, Billy, unfortunately in 2025 people still are bigots. We don’t live in a world where everyone is accepting of your sexuality.”

“I accepted your sexuality! People have known that I’m bisexual since I was 19.”

“That’s because it’s easier for you to be a white man with his sexuality. When you’re Black, it’s a double edged sword. We live in a small town and people talk. I thought if I killed myself, that would put me out of my misery.”

“So if you didn’t kill yourself, who was hanging by the rope?

“It was a mannequin.”

“That’s sick, man.” Billy got his coat and boots on, and headed out of the door.

“I’m heading out to the woods to find some sanity. When I get back, you better get the hell out of my house!”

Frustrated by this realization, he couldn’t hold it in any longer. He screamed at the top of his lungs, scaring the birds and other animals in the forest. Billy was breathing heavily. He looked at the watch Marcus had given him when he had turned 30. He threw it on the ground and smashed it with his feet.

“Billy? Is that really you?”

He turned around and saw Monica clear as day. She still looked beautiful, but had some crow’s feet around her eyes. She even had dyed her hair red.

“Monica, what are you doing here?”

“I always come to the woods when I want to leave society. I’m surprised to find you here. Our friends said that you had gone to Maine and now here we are.” She laughed. That boosted Billy’s spirits up. He always loved her laugh. It was almost as if angels had touched the Earth.

“I might as well tell you what happened.”

“Sure, what’s up?”

“Marcus is alive. He’s not dead. Apparently he faked his own suicide. How fucked up is that?”

“Did you give him a chance to explain himself?”

“Yeah. He said it was a mannequin that looked like him when he ‘hanged’ himself.”

“Wow, you’re right. That is fucked up. And you know what the real bullshit of it all is?”

“What?”

“He claimed he was being cyberbullied for his sexuality.”

“Oh…”

“Oh?”

“Well, Billy, he might not be out of the closet yet.”

“How? He was my best friend.”

“And he might still be your best friend. Despite the progress we’ve made in LGBT rights, people still are in the closet. Have you ever thought of that?”

Billy ran his hand through his hair. “No. It sucks people have to worry about their safety.”

“Exactly. I’m not saying Marcus had a right to scare everyone, but maybe he just wanted to stop being a closeted homosexual.”

“Maybe you two should talk again.”

“What about you?”

“I’m staying in an AirBnb for a while.”

“Oh, can I come with you?”

“Sure.”

The woods were a beautiful fall color. Billy and Monica saw a few hikers and waved at them. They didn’t wave back. The two buddies laughed. Billy stared at his best friend.

“Can I kiss you?”

“Why not?”

They kissed and everything felt right. Monica made him feel safe. He would forgive Marcus someday, but for now, the future was bright with his best friend/girlfriend.