
Nineteen-year-old Tay is gay, barely out of high school, and was recently kicked out of his home by his Bible-toting stepfather. The highlight of his day is the midnight trip to a laundromat to wash his meager stash of clothing. A handsome stranger is amused and sympathetic over issues Tay is having. His name is Luke, and he offers assistance to the young lad who’s obviously in over his head.
The next morning Tay wakes in a comfortable, unfamiliar bed, alone. He smells bacon. Are things beginning to look up?

The Laundry Room at Midnight By Emery C. Walters The laundry room at midnight. Nobody else was there. It was so tempting to just strip off the clothes he had on and throw them in the washer with the rest. He was fine with not doing it, until he reached in his pocket for the quarters and, instead, grabbed his grandfather’s stool sample bottle he was supposed to have dropped off at the clinic earlier in the week. And, great, he felt it crunch into pieces. Greater still, he felt the contents squish into his hand. Instinctively yanking his hand out of his pocket, which was a mistake, he smeared everything everywhere. Staring at his goosh-covered hand in horror, he made another, understandable little mistake—he wiped his hand on his shirt. “f**k!” Taylor shouted at himself. “Taylor Christi
