Eli frowned. “But this is our people. Right? LGBTQ+ means us too.”
“Let’s go,” Eli said. “But we’re sitting in the back.”
“I get it.” Sam pulled out a worn notebook, pages soft as fabric. “I used to run a trans-specific meetup across town. It folded during the pandemic. Now I’m just… drifting through these spaces, trying to find my people again.”
For a while, neither spoke. Then Sam nodded toward the group. “It’s loud in here.”
Sam smiled, tired and kind. “It does. And it doesn’t. You know how it is. Sometimes you need the whole choir. Sometimes you need the bass section.”
When the group ended, Kai invited them both to pizza. Eli looked at Sam. Sam shrugged.
Eli frowned. “But this is our people. Right? LGBTQ+ means us too.”
“Let’s go,” Eli said. “But we’re sitting in the back.”
“I get it.” Sam pulled out a worn notebook, pages soft as fabric. “I used to run a trans-specific meetup across town. It folded during the pandemic. Now I’m just… drifting through these spaces, trying to find my people again.”
For a while, neither spoke. Then Sam nodded toward the group. “It’s loud in here.”
Sam smiled, tired and kind. “It does. And it doesn’t. You know how it is. Sometimes you need the whole choir. Sometimes you need the bass section.”
When the group ended, Kai invited them both to pizza. Eli looked at Sam. Sam shrugged.
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