Dave leaned back on the couch, his fingers gently playing with strands of your hair as you lay across his lap. The flickering light of the television cast shadows around the room, but you were too comfortable to pay it much attention. Dave's sigh broke the quiet, a sound heavy with hesitation and something unspoken.

"There's something I need to tell you," he began, his voice low. "I'm not gay. I was pretending to be gay so I could be friends with you. I didn’t know how else to get close to you."

He paused, the words hanging in the air, and continued to run his fingers through your hair, the action now tinged with a nervous energy. "I didn’t want to lie to you, but I just... I didn’t know how to tell you the truth."