Only You by Jerry Cole (the top 100 crime novels of all time TXT) 📕

today, Bradley wouldn’t have been able to think of a single bad moment since arriving in Bali. Even with a gun pointed at his head, he would have struggled. So, it was fitting that their last full day together should feature the only one... and, as if it had been gathering steam this whole time, it turned out to be quite the ‘bad moment’ too.

Basically, Bradley couldn’t take it anymore. It was the early afternoon, the two were in a little beachside village called Canggu taking surfing lessons together. It was as cute an activity as the two had done since arriving on the tropical island, with there being a lot of falling into one another, helping the other to stand, laughing, grabbing, wipe-outs and more. By this time too, all pretense of this just being a little bit of fun seemed to be swept under the carpet, with Bradley and Sherman acting the couple in everything but name only.

After their lessons, the two men retired to the beach for a little break. They lay out on a couple of armchairs to catch some sun. Sherman’s eyes were closed as the warm afternoon sun rolled over him; his breathing was steady, he wore a smile on his face and he looked as content as Bradley had seen him. In that moment, for reasons that Bradley couldn’t explain, he was overcome with a sudden desire to ask the big question.

“Hey, Sherman, can I ask you —”

“I’ve been thinking.” Sherman suddenly sat up and swiveled in to face Bradley. “You should move to Sydney.”

Bradley was struck speechless. He’d been all worked up and ready to ‘have the talk’ with Sherman, and then he’d had the words taken right out of his mouth... sort of.

“Huh?” Was all Bradley had been able to say in the end.

“Think about it,” Sherman continued quickly. He was excited now. “What’s keeping you in Melbourne – like, really? Everything you have there, you can have in Sydney. Plus, it’s a bigger, better, more central city anyway. Like I don’t get why more people don’t live there... including you.”

“Well, um...” Again, Bradley wasn’t sure what to say. What Sherman was saying made sense, and in a way, it was kind of what he had been trying to get at... but only kind of. Really, it was more akin to Sherman wanting them to walk before they were even crawling. “That sounds great – it does, really,” Bradley assured him. “But I can’t just pick everything up and move to Sydney.”

“Why not?” Sherman demanded.

“My family all lives in Melbourne, for one.”

“They can visit whenever they want.”

“And my friends,” Bradley continued.

“Same goes for them.”

“And my acting classes are all in Melbourne – I've made some good contacts, finally. I don’t want to risk fucking that up.”

“Acting classes?” Sherman tilted his head and the look he fixed on Bradley was nothing but patronizing. “Come on, Brad... you can do those anywhere.”

“I can’t!” Bradley rebutted. “That’s not how acting works. Half if it is just meeting people and being in the right place at the right time. Well, I’ve finally started meeting people – like it’s taken me ages. I’ve made heaps of progress lately... I don’t want to screw it up.”

“So, let me get this straight. Because of a couple of acting classes, you don’t want to move to Sydney? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Well... no, not just them...” Bradley blinked a few times and tried to recenter. “I... I also don’t have a job in Sydney – I’d have no income. I wouldn’t know anyone —”

“I’ve got you covered for all of that.”

“Even still.”

“Even still what?”

Bradley wasn’t even sure what he was arguing against. Really, this was just an extension of the conversation he wanted to have anyway. But where he would have been content with Sherman admitting the two were perfect for one another, and maybe even agree to be ‘a couple,’ Sherman was going one step further. Bradley should have been stoked!

So why was he feeling so angry?

It was the tone, he realized. It was this expectancy that Bradley would be able to just drop everything and move and Sherman wouldn’t have to change a thing. His instant dismissal of Bradley’s life was insulting and Bradley sure as heck wasn’t going to just overlook it.

“I have a life,” Bradley started carefully. He really didn’t want to fight, but he could feel it coming. “Even if I’m not working, technically, I can’t just —”

“Technically?” Sherman blinked quickly a few times and frowned. “Is there an untechnical version of this story where you are working?”

“That’s not —”

“I’m just saying.” Sherman was sitting up straight now to face Bradley completely. He looked more like he was in a meeting, trying to persuade new clients, rather than having what should have been a rational conversation with his pseudo-boyfriend. “If you move to Sydney you can – I can take care of everything for you. I can help you find a place, get a job... I can probably make some calls and get you into some new acting classes too. Like, really, there’s no point staying in Melbourne as far as I can see. I’ve got you.”

The offer was a kind one, but it was hitting Bradley in a way he didn’t appreciate. It spoke to an attitude that Sherman had brought with him to this trip, one that Bradley had noticed peripherally throughout the week, but was now staring at him full in the face.

Sherman thought that he was better than Bradley. It was as simple as that. Ever since Bradley had admitted that he wasn’t a famous actor, that he was a poor struggling one that still lived at home with his mother and had no real aspirations to speak of, Sherman had deigned to baby him. He paid for Bradley’s flights.