“Not all who wander are lost.” || #ChoicesCreates Round 12, hosted by @hollyashton . Inspired by both the prompt and Pride Month.
This is the first time when Zig thinks back on all the emotional anguish of discovering his sexuality, and he feels relieved instead of sick to his stomach. It had been hell but here he is now, standing tall and unafraid, more sure of himself than he’s ever been before. All that time he’d felt so isolated, and now it turns out that he’d never been lost, just on the path of learning who he truly is. He touches his fingers gently to the dried paint smeared across his cheek, the distinct colors reminding him that he isn’t alone anymore. He doesn’t have to be.
Nearby Zack’s waving around a rainbow flag bigger than he is, and beside him Kaitlyn’s wearing one that’s various shades of pink as a cape. Zig watches as the girl lifts her hands into the air, aimlessly shouting nonsense into the chaos like so many others around them. He laughs, then glances over his shoulder to see the waves of people who look just as happy as he feels. A soft look crosses his face, and for just a moment, the noise and the hype all fade into a gentle buzz like you see in the movies.
All the struggling, all the fighting with himself… It was all worth it to feel this… this…
“Free?” He looks over to his left and Kaitlyn’s smiling up at him with shining eyes. “That’s what you’re feeling, isn’t it?”
He tilts his head, but slowly nods. “Yeah… How’d you know?”
She laughs merrily, gesturing around them with a sweeping motion. “It’s our first pride parade! I feel it too!”
He grins brightly, throwing his arm over her shoulders and doing the same to Zack once he’s in range. Zack lifts his flag higher in response, throwing his head back and yelling into the air: “I love being gaaaaay!!”
Some nearby people cheer before copying him, and Zig just laughs, looking at the seemingly endless crowd ahead of them. “I’m proud to be me,” he says, but nobody else hears him. But that’s not important. What’s important is that it’s the first time he’s ever felt pride and damn… It’s years and years overdue.
