Page 51 of Cemetery Boys

Maybe a distraction was his best bet.

“Why don’t you show me what they look like,” Yadriel said, picking up his yearbook where it had been left on the floor.

Usually, his family couldn’t afford a yearbook. His sophomore year was the first time his dad had bought him one, even though they were hard up for cash without the income from his mom’s nursing job. On top of being the leader of the brujx, his dad also worked as an independent contractor to make ends meet. Most of his employees were other brujos, but projects were sometimes few and far between. It was the brujas, working as doctors, doulas, nurses, and psychologists, who were the financial heads of the households.

Even so, his dad had somehow scrounged up the fifty dollars it cost to buy a yearbook. Yadriel brushed his fingers over the glossy pages.

He looked expectantly at Julian, who laid there stubbornly for a few beats before giving up and moving to sit next to him.

“So who am I looking up?” Yadriel asked, thumbing through the pages.

“Flaca won’t be in it,” Julian said. “Dropped out the end of last year. Rocky should be, though.”

“Last name?”

“Ramos.”

“Our grade?”

“Yup.”

Yadriel flipped to the R’s, eyes scanning the pages for “Ramos,” but he didn’t see a boy named Rocky.

“There,” Julian pressed his finger to the page, but not before Yadriel was already flipping to the next one. The page fell right through Julian’s hand. Yadriel went back to see where he was pointing.

“That’s Rocky,” Julian said.

Rocky, or, rather, Raquel Ramos, was a pretty girl with a high, sleek ponytail and striking features. She had a septum piercing and a bored expression. He vaguely recognized her but couldn’t say for certain, which wasn’t a rarity when you went to a high school with thousands of students.

Julian’s mouth quirked into a lopsided grin.

Yadriel glanced between him and the photo. “She’s pretty,” he said, without really knowing why. He shifted. “She your girlfriend or something?” he asked in his best casual tone.

Julian snorted. “No.” He leaned back, propping himself up on his elbows. “I don’t do girlfriends.”

Yadriel rolled his eyes and scoffed. “What? Because you’re some kind of mujeriego, or something? Too many ladies to pick just one?” he asked with a flare of annoyance.

“No.” Julian’s tone was cross, eyes still on the page. “Because I’m gay, asshole.”

Yadriel blinked. He … hadn’t expected that. He stared at Julian. “Oh.” His mind raced to place this new information with the boy sitting next to him.

Julian glanced up. “That a problem?” he asked with a hard stare and a cocked eyebrow.

“Uh—no, no, that’s not a problem.” Heat bloomed in Yadriel’s cheeks.

“And so is Rocky,” Julian went on nonchalantly. “So we cancel each other out.”

“Really?”

He nodded. “Queer folks are like wolves,” Julian told him. “We travel in packs.”

“I—I am, too. I mean—” Yadriel cleared his throat. “I’m into guys.” His chest tightened as he waited for Julian’s response.

But Julian only blinked slowly at him, as if waiting for Yadriel to reveal something more interesting. “Cool,” he said, after Yadriel didn’t offer anything else.

Julian nodded to the yearbook. “Luca Garcia.”

Yadriel wasn’t sure if he was relieved or annoyed by Julian’s nonchalance.