The first time he realized he was “different” was in middle school when all the boys were talking about who they liked. The common name brought up was Stephanie, the smart, popular girl in their grade. She had blue eyes and blonde hair that reached her waist. But when they had asked him, his mind instantly traveled to Brendon, the boy who sat next to him in math class. Brendon had beautiful, twinkling green eyes and curly brown hair that would constantly fall onto his eyes. He was always wearing a broad smile that showcased his pearly, white teeth and would be dribbling his basketball as walked to class. He didn’t know why he had thought of him, but what he did know was that if he told any of the boys they would all make fun of him. And so when he blushed and stuttered out a “B-,” he quickly changed it to Brooke. When they asked who that was, he simply stated she was his new neighbor and the conversation fizzled out along with his anxiety. As the boys turned to the next person in the circle and continued to talk about who they liked, he couldn’t help but wonder if there was someone else out there who felt the same way he did.