Two Boys Kissing

Avery asks Ryan to show him the best that Kindling has to offer. Ryan considers taking him to The Kindling Café, but he knows that most of his schoolmates go there, and he wants to avoid them. He decides to take Avery to the river. The chorus reflects on its own members, noting how many of them lost contact with the outside, natural world while they were dying of AIDS. They are excited for Avery and Ryan to enjoy nature together: “It makes us more grateful now for rivers, more grateful for sky” (49). Ryan calls his Aunt Caitlin to ask if they can park in her yard and borrow her canoe, which she’s happy to allow. They row until they find a nice place to drift. Ryan asks Avery for his story. Avery worries that he’s asking about his gender identity, so Ryan starts, sharing about his family and their history in Kindling. He reveals that Aunt Caitlin helps him and is supportive about his being gay when his mother and stepfather aren’t. He tells Avery that he started the GSA at his school, and they planned the gay prom, calling other GSAs in the area to invite their students. He also shares that his Aunt Caitlin would bring him to the river, in the same canoe, just to talk.

Avery compares Aunt Caitlin’s gentle support to his own parents’ fierce support. Timidly, he reveals that he was assigned female at birth, and is surprised that Ryan seems unbothered by it. He tells Ryan about his parents support from a young age: They moved him from town to town until he found the right doctors to prescribe him hormone blockers to affirm his gender growing up. Ryan tells a nervous Avery that he can share whatever he’s comfortable with, and Avery ends up telling Ryan everything. He tells him about surgeries and hormones but worries that he’s oversharing, and that Ryan won’t still see him as a boy. Ryan, however, replies, “I like whatever it is that makes you the person you are” (56). Then he asks Avery if he has any siblings, and the conversation continues. 

Craig questions his decision to pursue breaking the record. He attributes his efforts to his childhood interest in the Guinness Book of World Records, and to the hate crime against Tariq. He recalls going to Tariq’s house after Tariq got out of the hospital; Craig cried despite not being close with Tariq before. Tariq comforted him, which made Craig feel even worse for crying, because Tariq was the one who had suffered. Beyond Tariq suffering, however, Craig cried because he couldn’t make sense of the assault. He felt connected to the event because he felt rejected by his own family. His family is unaware of his sexual orientation, but Craig knows that if they did know, they wouldn’t support him. “For a long time he thought he had a demon on his shoulders, weighing him down so he’d drown quicker. The demon liked boys, wanted nothing more than to kiss a boy. Craig couldn’t get rid of him, no matter how much he wished it, no matter what promises he made to God. Then he met Harry, and suddenly the demon was revealed to be a friend” (58).

Craig also realizes that he may have undertaken the record-breaking project because Harry broke up with him. Harry had said that they’d be better as friends, and his friendship kept Craig from spiraling into a depression—but seeing Tariq bruised and beaten made him feel helpless. He decided that he needed to break the kissing record, and he asked Harry to do it with him. When they told Tariq about it, Tariq agreed it was a great idea. Craig insists that he isn’t doing it to kiss Harry, but to raise awareness.

Harry and Craig have established their signals for needing water, asking for a phone, for needing a squeeze, or to call the whole thing off. Craig can’t help thinking about Harry telling Craig he loves him, but Craig can’t ask him what he means. He feels Harry smile against his lips, but he doesn’t know what that means, either. Less than a hundred people are watching the livestream.