"I still am, I've just gotten better about hiding the hives," Alex retorted with a laugh. It was true he'd never really felt like he'd fit in there. He and Scott had eventually made their peace, though--with each other, if not with their parents, who were both too far out of reach, in different ways, for real closure.

"Four years away seemed like enough, I guess. Besides, I'm at the mercy of my nerdery, and the graduate program I just started really is a good one."