Pride and Glass Unicorns

By David Gearing

Tired of being the responsible one, Brenden agrees to his friend Selena’s suspiciously impromptu road trip to San Diego’s Pride Parade. Unlucky with love, he hopes this trip helps him clear his head and maybe find a boy or two along the way.

Selena has a plan of her own, but she hopes Pride will give her a chance to turn her life around, away from a past littered with the broken hearts of many, many women.

And Dick doesn’t mind being the third wheel as long as there is plenty of men fun to be had.

This road trip to Pride was supposed to be a night to remember.  A chance to get away from their lives, away from their problems, away from secrets. But when Brenden runs into an ex-boyfriend, a fun and reckless night turns into plans of revenge, secrets, and accidental attempted domestic terrorism.

• Language: English
• Publisher: David Gearing
• Release date: Mar 27, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386734505

David Gearing

David Gearing is a recent transplant from the harsh Arizona deserts to the green forests of the Pacific Northwest. He plots, he games, he pretends to be his own living room rockstar when no one is looking. His other books range from various genres from thrillers to gothic horror and beyond. You can find him at his webpage DavidGearingBooks.com or at his publisher's website AkusaiPublishing.com

Book preview

Pride & Glass Unicorns

by

David Gearing

Chapter 1

Brenden picked up the small figuring in his hand and held it out to Selena. What do you think? he said. The figurine shined a dark blue in the bright sunlight that came in through the windows. It was a long, slim figure, bent at the waist and folded down, holding what looked like a flute from its mouth. From the back, it had three rounded strands of hair that stuck out like porcupine spurs.

What the hell is that? Selena said. She approached the figure and let her index finger slide down the smooth back. It looks like it was trying to play a recorder in the fourth grade and forgot how.

Brenden smiled. I kinda like it, he said.

Dick, the small twenty-something Hispanic boy-toy that seemed to take a liking to Selena came by and said, It needs more pink. His brown eyes stared at it for a while, then he pointed at the legs. If that’s a leg, and that’s a leg, he said, pointing at the two extensions at the bottom. Then what’s that?

Brenden smiled and turned away. I got it, Brenden said. It’s ugly.

No, seriously. What is that?

Selena pressed her hand against the side of her mouth to point her voice in Dick’s direction. It’s his cock. She let the hard, final ‘k’ sound click loud enough to hear throughout the store.

Dick covered his mouth, turned around, and bent over laughing.

It’s not that funny, Brenden said. He liked the figurine. It’s bold, it’s different. It’s musical.

He took the figure and the wooden base that it stood on up to the cashier near the front of the store. The register stood on a glass case that housed a litany of different necklaces from different colored rocks. Yellow, blue, something that Brenden was sure was topaz and emerald and turquoise.

What do you think about these? he said.

Selena pranced over to the counter and rested both of her hands on the glass, smearing it with the grease and lotion she had put on nearly a half-hour before. These are pretty, she said, but they’re really not your style.

I was thinking for my mom, Brenden said. Might be a nice Mother’s Day present.

Dick walked up to the counter as well, poking his head between Selena and Brenden. Then, with a shove of his body, he parted the two and let his nose press up against the glass. He smiled as he did this, though he tried to hide that his nose print was funny.

To him, at least. Brenden didn’t have the heart to tell him that his nose print looked like a dog’s pressed against the car windows.

Oh, the woman in the store said. Brenden had seen her kind before. Short, curly hair. Brown and wavy like she crimped it the night before. Her skin was bare of any makeup, but she smelled like the different types of incense that the store carried on the other side of the building. Her long, flowing dress looked thin, like it was made up of black and yellow tie-dyed fabric.

Brenden admired the way the skirt seemed to flow like a flag around her angles.

Are you ready? she said. Her voice was soft, calm. Definitely that calm you only find in New Age practitioners.

Brenden nodded. Yes, I’ll take him.

The woman eyed the statue and then at Brenden. Are you sure? She had a look of concern that transferred to Brenden.

What do you mean? he asked.

Well, she said. She held it up, showcasing it to him with one hand, rubbing its back with the other. Do you know what this is?

A figure? Looks Native American.

The woman nodded. It is, good, good. But it’s a Kokopelli, specifically. A fertility god.

Selena laughed and turned around.

A what? Dick said.

Fertility god. It’s used to promote good fertility for humans, the woman said. Or crops, I suppose.

Or crops, Brenden said with a smile, mocking her nod.

Yes, the woman said. Just be careful before you invoke this kind of power.

I’ll take it anyway, Brenden said.

Dick slapped one of his tiny hands on the counter, pointing at the Kokopelli with the other. Do you have any with pink?

The woman stared at him, dumbfounded. I don’t know, she said. She looked awkwardly over her shoulder, as if she had a warehouse somewhere behind the low bookshelf of New Age books about crystals and pentagrams.

He’s kidding, Brenden said. He pulled out his wallet and flipped through the small number of bills that seemed to have not disappeared from his grasp. How much?

The woman looked at the figurine’s base, flipping it over. Nineteen, she said.

Nineteen? Brenden folded his brown leather wallet back up. He held it back by his side, hoping she would call his bluff.

Yes, that’s right. It’s a powerful figure. Perhaps it’s not the right one for you. The woman let the small figurine rest behind the register and she hurried around the corner with a sense of purpose. Here, she said, follow me.

Brenden followed her with his eyes first. When she disappeared behind a wooden four-shelf case with dolls and golden pyramids, he chased after her slowly.

The woman had appeared at the edge of the case where Brenden first picked up the Kokopelli. Let’s try something that’s more you.

What’s that mean?

Everything in here speaks to someone. Or a type of someone.

Brenden smiled, tight-lipped, with his mouth only. His eyes stared at her between her ears, wondering just what her brain was actually doing.

Sure, sure, Brenden said.

As she looked at him, Brenden tried to fake his smile again. When she turned to the case, he let his face relax into the typical grimace that felt like home.

Here, she said, pulling something glassy and shiny from the back of the case.

Oh, I love it, Dick said. He gasped, rested his hands on his thighs, and bent over to get a better peek. It’s perfect.

Isn’t it? the woman said. She held it up to Brenden’s face. This is perfect for you.

Brenden turned to Dick. Yeah, it is kinda like you.

The woman shook her head, keeping her genuine, almost creepy constant smile. No, silly. For you.

Brenden pointed at himself, taking a step back. This is not me. Not me at all.

Selena broke through the maze of shelves and incense candles to join in the on the conversation. She burst into laughter then turned around, pointing up into the air. That is definitely you.

The woman covered the glass figure with her hand and walked to the register through the bookshelf maze. Excellent, she said, I’ll wrap it up for you. And lucky for you, it’s on sale.

Brenden shook his head. There is no way that is for me. It doesn’t speak to me at all.

Ah, but it calls out to you. And it hears you, the woman said. She let the figure on the desk and took a step back, admiring it.

If she loved it so much, she should have bought it.

Maybe your signals are crossed, Brenden said. Maybe you’re not quite listening as well as you think you are.

She smiled and nodded. I think this is for you.

She typed in a series of numbers and the green electronic numbers appeared on the thin black screen near Brenden’s eyes.

6.99.

Brenden glanced at Dick, then to Selena. What do you think?

I think you should find something else in San Diego, Selena said, and keep that for yourself. She turned around again to hide her smirk.

She always did this. Making the jokes, then turning around to hide her ecstatic joy over someone else’s schadenfreude. It was nearly her trademark.

Well, that and her curly, auburn hair. In the Arizona sun, it shined coppery orange. She kept it cut short in the lesbian fashion to make sure the other dykes knew she was one, too. She had the domineering personality that made it obvious, but the lipstick and mastery over makeup that threw a few curveballs if you didn’t know what to look for.

Brenden had considered her his female equal. Both blended perfectly into the straight world. Both had strong opinions.

The only difference was Selena wasn’t afraid of hers.

You should totally get it, Dick said. Like right now. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of wet bills. Do you need money or something?

Brenden pushed his hand away. No, I don’t want your cash. I have it. He reached out into the wallet and forked over the cash for the figurine.

Thank you, the woman said. Listen to it. I’m sure it’ll be your guide.

Brenden nodded, looking over the woman’s shoulder to a picture of an Egyptian desert with a bright golden pyramid outlined in thick black lines. On the sands, large blue Egyptian gods stood in their typical poses, forced to stand flat against the sky with their flat, almost concave chests facing out, their heads to the side.

Sure, Brenden said. Thanks.

Want me to wrap this for you? the woman said.

Brenden took the figure in his hands, holding it gently. It was completely glass, smooth to the touch. Even the base that it stood upon was a solid glass and refracted the lights perfectly into a rounded rainbow of colors against the glass. No, no. This is fine.

The woman nodded and waved. Great, she said. Namaste.

As they left the store, they were greeted with the smell of hot asphalt and a faint melting feeling in the scorching sun. Arizona had been working on its fiftieth day of pure sunlight, no cloud in the sky.

It was a portent of things to come, Brenden thought, all of this sunlight and no clouds. Perfect for a trek to San Diego Pride.

Upon hearing this, Selena looked at him with her typical look of disdain, but went with it anyway. Anything for an adventure, she muttered.

But as they left the store, a random recommendation by Dick, Brenden had thought about the damned figurine and how it could have possibly represented him.

He held it out to the other two. Guys, seriously. Explain.

Selena smiled, pulling back her laughter. It’s a unicorn, she said. It’s perfect for you.

Brenden held his smile back, turning his eyes to Dick.

He shrugged and got into the black, two-door Chrysler convertible. You know me, he said. I like unicorns.

You would like unicorns, Brenden said. But I don’t like unicorns. So why does this unicorn like me?

It wasn’t a completely hideous thing. It was a small glass unicorn, the type that looked like it was blown and shaped with molten glass. The craftsmanship was good, with small strands of gold where there would be muscles from the creature’s muscles. A thin strand of shiny gold circled up the unicorn’s horn that stuck boldly out of its forehead.

Brenden shrugged. I mean, I guess it’s nice.

It’s a rare creature. Like you. Selena opened the door and let herself into the car’s front seat. Dick stuck his arms on the headrests of each of the front seats.

Exactly, Dick said.

But even Dick agreeing with Selena made Brenden hate Dick even more. His voice was high-pitched. A gay voice. Even before that poor boy walked into the room, you could feel the heat of his gay flame in the room.

Dick was the type of gay who was Richard when Brenden met him, and Dick after their first dinner together.

But it was typical for someone who grew up around the gay bars in the smallest city in the world. The scene was laughable at best, but the only thing they had.

When Dick came out to his parents, he spent most of his time avoiding them by hiding out in the bars and clubs, paying next to nothing for drinks, and taking brief vacations in the bathhouses in Phoenix. This was