Catalyst (Connectivity Book 2) Read online

  When he’d come home that night and told the wild story to his family, everyone had been understandably shocked and shaken, especially his parents and sister.

  Jasmine was just over a year older than him, and as the first born child to a Connective couple, she knew she was a Catalyst and would, hopefully, one day find her Complement. But being the second child of a Connective couple, Travis figured the odds were stacked against him at being a Catalyst as well. After the first born, subsequent children of Connective couples were less likely to carry the Connective gene and not be Catalysts at all.

  His family had hardly been able to believe that Josh and Cory had found each other and established their Connection. They’d never heard of anyone finding their Connection before the age of twenty-five. But for Josh and Cory to be so young and newly Connected in their bonding period and forced to suffer a physical separation? It was nearly unimaginable, what they’d gone through.

  Travis’s parents had commended him on the instrumental part he’d played in helping the pair reconnect and were planning on reaching out to Josh and Cory’s families after the wedding, as another Connective couple to relate with.

  Apparently, Edgar had taken Cory and Josh’s story to heart and designed a drawing of them to give them as a gift for their marriage.

  “Where did you get their photo?” Travis asked.

  Edgar blushed and looked at him hesitantly. “Don’t get mad. I looked on your phone.”

  Travis looked sternly at his brother. “You know not to do that. You should have asked.”

  “I know. I’m sorry.”

  “Please ask next time, okay?”

  Edgar nodded.

  Relaxing his posture, Travis continued, “The drawing is really good, Edgar. Thank you, again. It was really nice of you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Travis hugged his brother again. “Want to see what I bought for Josh and Cory?” he asked with a smirk.

  Edgar smiled and nodded, seemingly relieved to be off the hook, so Travis led him out of the room and down to his own room. He pulled the box off his dresser and held it out for Edgar to look inside.

  Edgar smiled and pulled out one of the rainbow sashes Travis had purchased for his friends. Some of the guys from the baseball team had pulled it together enough to realize they should do something for Cory and Josh before they got married and were planning to treat the couple to a little bachelor party and movie. Travis thought it would be more fun if Cory and Josh had to wear something denoting their bachelor party status throughout the evening, so he’d purchased them matching rainbow pride sashes with the words, Groom To Be, spelled out in rhinestones on the front.

  Edgar turned the rainbow fabric over in his hand to see what he held and smiled when he realized what it was.

  “Cool, huh?” he asked his brother.

  Edgar nodded. “Will they like them?” he asked after he set the box down to use his hands to sign again.

  “I think so. They don’t hide being out. They’re both proud to be gay and in love. I think they’ll like them.”

  “Cool. It was nice of you to do something for them.”

  “You too. They’re good friends, though,” Travis finished. His ASL wasn’t perfect and he’d had a hard time following Edgar’s faster paced signing. He still had a long way to go to be as fast or as fluent as his brother.

  “Let me go grab the drawing for you. You should find a frame.”

  Travis nodded and Edgar turned to head out the door again. Grabbing up the box, Travis stuffed the fabric back inside and replaced it on his dresser. As he took his keys, wallet, and phone out of his pocket he noticed a text from his buddy Dylan confirming tomorrow night’s plans for the impromptu bachelor party. He tapped out a quick reply and Edgar appeared in his doorway again with the drawing in hand. Tomorrow he’d have to see what he could find for a nice frame and wrap up the gift for the wedding.

  -II-

  After a relatively quiet morning shift at Repurpose, the household building materials recycler where he worked, Travis swung by the house to pick up Jasmine, who’d agreed to go shopping with him at the mall. He needed to find a new pair of shoes to wear to the wedding and had almost zero fashion sense. His sister knew how much trouble he could get into when left to shop on his own and had always told him to bring her along for her advice when buying new clothes.

  “Hey,” Jasmine said as she climbed into his truck that he’d left idling at the curb.

  “Hey, Jazzy,” he returned, shooting her a grin. “Ready to shop ‘til you drop?”

  Jasmine shook her head with a smile, situating herself on the seat. “Only you could be so excited about shoppin’ and still be so terrible at it. How do you manage to go to so many different stores with great choices, then after hours, end up buyin’ the worst thing on offer? I’ll never understand it. Hopefully you end up marryin’ someone who has decent fashion sense, otherwise, you’ll be doomed for life.” She smirked and shook her head again. “Remember that time you bought those overalls and that hideous flannel that had those patches on the elbows?”

  Travis laughed as he navigated the drive. “Hey. I liked those overalls. They were really comfy and roomy. And that flannel was soft. I see people wearing that kind of thing all over nowadays; patches on elbows are in if you’re a hipster.”

  Jasmine gasped. “You always wanted to wear those things together, though. Oh my God, I swear you wore that outfit around just to embarrass me in front of my friends. Ugh. I was always so mortified. My friends would want to come over just to stare at you and gush about how cute my brother was, then you’d walk out in that outfit and we’d all die of laughter over your fashion choices.”

  Travis gave a good laugh at seeing his sister’s remembered embarrassment. Even though he’d worn that outfit because he’d genuinely liked it, it was always a plus hearing it’d served a double purpose. “Well, at least you realize my predicament involving shoes for the wedding tomorrow. I’m sure I’d pick brown shoes to go with my suit and that would be wrong somehow, so at least you can point me in the right direction.”

  “Can you even believe that Cory is gettin’ married?” Jasmine asked with a wistful quality to her voice as she looked across the front seat at him. “We’ve known him forever it seems like. Who would have ever thought he would turn out to be a Complement? And being gay? Mhmm. And holy cow, to find his Connection at eighteen? Never. I never would have thought it was possible. He’s blessed, that’s what he is. That means it’s possible, Trav. I could find my Complement tomorrow, or next week. That is both awesome and terrifyin’ to think about. I can’t even imagine what they must be goin’ through, finding each other so young and still in high school. Mhmm mhmm mhmm,” she trailed off, sounding just like their mother.

  Travis could hardly believe it himself. Cory and Josh truly were lucky to have found each other, not only because of their age but because of their timing and situation. For something to have happened to Cory and for Josh to have been right there, already waiting, just made their situation that much more astonishing.

  “It really is amazing, isn’t it? I’m so happy for them, though. Just looking at them, man, it totally makes me jealous. You can just see the love they have for each other shining out of their eyes. They’re always touching and looking at each other. God, they’re so in love, it’s like the world could fall apart and they wouldn’t even know it.” Travis sighed and maneuvered his truck to park in a stall. “Tomorrow’s going to be so epic for them.”

  The truck was still idling as Travis gazed out the window.

  Jasmine patted him on the thigh, startling him out of his wandering thoughts. “Maybe it’ll happen for you, too,” she said, referring to the fact that he may not even be a Catalyst.

  Travis could only hope she was right. After living his whole life watching that kind of love from his parents and then to be confronted with it from his friends, he didn’t know if that kind of love was meant for him. It seemed a hard thing to hope for
. Someone who was made just for him, that would be the other half of his soul and love him the way Cory and Josh loved each other, he shook his head in wonder.

  “Maybe, but not likely. Even if I do carry the gene, it’s likely to take years to find my Complement. Cory and Josh are the true exceptions to every Connective pair out there. Sorry, Jazzy. Even you’re probably looking at five more years of the single life. I know you may date here and there, but it just seems so pointless when you know there’s only one person for you, and they could be anywhere. Or maybe they already are lying in a coma somewhere just waiting to be woken up.” Travis shuddered a little at the thought. “Can you even imagine?”

  Jasmine took a deep breath. “Ever since you told us about Cory and Josh, I’ve tried not to think about it too much. Come on, Trav. This conversation sucks. Let’s go inside and find you some shoes for the weddin’. Maybe we can find an engraving shop too and you can get a frame for the picture Edgar drew for Cory and Josh. It would be cool to get their names on it or their weddin’ date or somethin’. What do you think?”

  Travis nodded. “You’re right. Let’s go. I’m getting all mopey thinking about the kind of everlasting love that’s meant only for me and finding a person that completes me in a way no one else ever will. Ugh. Who wants to think about that?” he said sarcastically.

  Jasmine rolled her eyes and pushed her door open. “I’ll be inside if you want to come find me when you’re done mopin’,” she called as she slammed the door.

  Chuckling, Travis pushed his door open as well. “It’s called pining, not moping. There’s a difference,” he replied to his sister’s retreating form.

  “Whatever. It’s depressin’. Let’s go shop. That always cheers a girl up.”

  He smiled. As happy as he was for his friends and their upcoming wedding, the situation just brought to light all that was lacking in his own life. For his own sanity and his sisters, he’d do his best to push his mopey feelings aside and be happy for Cory and Josh on their special day. Maybe one day that would happen for him too and he smiled at the possibility as he followed his sister inside.

  ~

  Checking his reflection in the mirror, Travis ran his fingers gently through his hair, making sure each of his finger curls was behaving itself. He sprayed his hair with some warm water, and using some hair custard, twisted a few of the coils that seemed to be misbehaving. He checked once more to survey his shave job and when he was satisfied with his look, he washed his hands and left the bathroom.

  He grabbed his things from his desk and noticed a missed text from Jake, a buddy of his from the baseball team who was going out with them for Cory and Josh’s bachelor party. Reading the text, Travis tapped out a quick “yes” and pocketed his phone and wallet.

  Double checking that his silly gift was in his backpack, he slung the bag over his shoulder and left his room.

  “Well, don’t you look nice,” his mother commented after he’d entered the family room where she and his dad were watching some sitcom. His dad looked over too and smiled at him.

  “Thanks, Mama. I’m headed out to pick up Jake. I guess his mom needed the car for something, so he needs a ride. Then we’re over to the theater for Cory and Josh’s thing. Not sure what time I’ll be home, okay?”

  “It’s fine, baby. I hope you boys have fun tonight.” His father nodded along. “It must be a little weird for you to be planning a bachelor party, hmm? Most boys your age would have another few years before they had to worry about somethin’ like this. But you boys are doin’ a nice thing in taking them out. I’m sure they appreciate you guys planning somethin’ for them. Give Cory and his man our best, will you?”

  “I will. See you guys later.” Travis waved as he passed in front of the TV, heading to the kitchen.

  “Don’t have too much fun,” his father called with a laugh and Travis grinned wide, raising his eyebrows a few times.

  “Be safe, Trav. Have fun.” His dad smiled.

  Travis nodded and left the house.

  Jake lived a few streets over and often asked for rides to practice or games if his mom needed the car for work. It was just Jake and his sister, Cameron, with their mom, who worked a few different jobs to make ends meet for their small family. Travis tried to help his buddy out whenever he could. His mom worked hard to support Jake playing baseball and his sister playing tennis, so he’d offered to drive Jake whenever he needed it. Jake shot him a few bucks here and there for gas money, but mostly they were usually going the same places, so it wasn’t too big of a deal.

  Travis pulled up to Jake’s place and honked once. The door to the house swung open and Jake bounded out. Even though Jake was only a junior, he was almost as tall as Travis, but his skinny frame was all long limbs and angles. He’d grown taller so quickly, he’d yet to fill out in mass, and Travis chuckled upon seeing him lope to the truck.

  “Hey, dude. Thanks for coming to get me,” he said as he shut the door and buckled up. “Mom had an unexpected extra shift come up at the bar and needed the car.”

  “No problem,” Travis said easily, pulling away from the curb. “How’s the new job? Any cute girls coming into the library over summer break?” Travis teased and snuck a glance at his companion. Jake had taken a summer job reshelving books at the library. Since he was already such a bookworm, the position fit him perfectly.

  Jake pinkened a little in the cheeks and shuffled in his seat. “Maybe.”

  Travis laughed and nudged Jake in the side. “Well if you decide to run off and get married like our boys here, at least wait until you finish high school.”

  Jake laughed at that. “I know, right? Talk about settling down.” Jake shook his head like the idea was just as crazy as living on the moon. “I’ve only had a couple of girlfriends in my life, but I’m nowhere near ready to get married. I’ve gotta admit, though, the way those two look at each other, damn. You can practically feel the love suffocating you from a distance.”

  Travis laughed. “Totally.”

  “But they really are so adorable with each other, aren’t they? Always holding hands and touching in some way. I guess if I had a girl that looked at me like that I would probably be acting the same way. I don’t know that I’d be getting married after only six weeks, but it’d be nice to have someone like that who loved you that much, huh?” Jake questioned, looking over at Travis.

  Travis nodded. He could only wonder at such things. He’d never dated anyone before or ever really even been interested in anyone if he were being honest. “It would be pretty special for sure,” he said and they continued their drive in silence.

  When they walked up to the theater a while later, Cory, Josh, Dylan, Samuel, and Liam were already there and called out greetings as they approached.

  “Hey, Cory. Josh,” Travis said as he hugged both men tightly and moved down the line to greet the rest of his brothers and teammates. The baseball team had become a second family over the years and he was really going to miss the team dynamic and camaraderie of playing with the guys.

  “So, what are we seeing?” Jake asked after he’d finished his greetings.

  “The newest Dwayne Johnson movie, but it doesn’t start for an hour, so we’re heading over to Chili’s,” Dylan answered. “Let’s go ahead and get the tickets and we can head over and eat.”

  “Sounds good,” Travis replied and pulled out twenty bucks that he handed to Liam who went off to the window to make their purchase.

  “How are you guys?” he asked, directing his question to the happy couple, as they all made their way across the street a minute later.

  “You know how we are, Trav. Wishing today was tomorrow,” Cory said, looking at Josh who pulled him in for a quick kiss and whispered something into his ear. The look they shared when Josh pulled back made Travis’s heart clench at all the meaning held in that glance. Travis could imagine any number of things the pair would be whispering about. The night before anyone’s wedding had to be so full of emotion and meaning, but the bond and Co
nnection shared by a Connective couple was so much more than empty promises and placating words. The words they shared were irrevocably true and heartfelt.

  “I can only imagine,” Travis returned and both men’s faces softened into a look of understanding and sympathy. “But enough of that. Let’s get this evening going shall we?” he asked as Jake held the door to the restaurant open for all of them to enter.

  The girl at the hostess stand looked like she might faint as they all walked in, and she nervously wrote down their party name, while blushing a deep red. She stammered out a request for them to wait a few minutes so they could arrange a table.

  Cory piped up saying that Josh should have invited some friend of his named Jersey, who was going to be Josh’s best man at their wedding. Liam encouraged Josh to call him and for a moment, Travis felt like a total fool. One of them should have thought to ask Josh if he had any close friends he’d like to invite. It was their night to celebrate and of course, Josh had to have his own group of friends aside from them. Sure they’d all grown relatively close in the last few weeks but Josh had gone to a different school and obviously had his own life before Cory.

  Before Travis could dwell on it too much though, Josh confirmed that his friend was on his way and Dylan broke in telling the pair to order whatever they wanted as it was being taken care of by the group. They’d all talked beforehand and agreed to cover whatever Cory and Josh wanted to do for the night, so no one was caught off guard.

  Dylan finished his speech by announcing to the couple that Travis had something for them, and a huge grin split Travis’s face. He grabbed up his backpack off the floor.

  “What did you do, Travis?” Cory questioned, giving him a look, but the hostess chose that moment to announce with a blush that their table was ready.