Thoughts on "Jay's Gay Agenda"

Synopsis:

A small community lived in a small town in Washington called Riverton. They’re mostly composed of Mormons, Protestants, or Catholics. Among them lived a 17-year-old boy named Jay (“Hey! That’s me!!! Sike 🤭”) Collier. Jay’s a man of numbers, lists, and statistics, his mom is a general manager of a grocery store called Fresh Savings while his dad worked as a mechanic and even built the home they live in (with thin walls however). Due to his religious town, Jay tends to abstain from swearing preferring to substitute fuck with “frack”. During his freshman year, Jay had his “gay awakening” at a Shawn Mendes concert, and eventually, this led to him coming out and being accepted by almost everyone. However, Jay still gets annoyed at his peer’s attempts to stereotype him (some of which turn out to be true to his visible ire). Despite enjoying the acceptance among his community and family, Jay deeply longs to accomplish his own Gay Agenda which is composed of a list of things he always wanted to do with other gay guys. Despite the statistics he hasn’t yet found another gay man in town as he expressed hope his coming out would signal and inspire other gays to come out to no avail. Worse, he often hears about his classmates’ romantic experiences and hookups which irritates him to no end. Despite this, Jay appreciates what he’s been given and as such maintains a close relationship with Lu who’s confident in Jay finding himself a boyfriend someday. Jay’s seen better days with Lu however as she recently started dating and became serious with a guy named Chip from Spokane causing Lu to back out of and cancel plans with Jay in order to see him especially since Chip lives far away and Lu’s aunt had sold her car to pay for rent to Jay’s growing displeasure. Things certainly didn’t help when Lu decided to go to the Hoedown with Chip as a date instead of dressing up with Jay as they traditionally do and unintentionally offended Jay during her date by implying that he needs her to find a date causing an angry Jay to storm off. To Jay’s surprise and excitement, however, his mother had recently been promoted to district manager and will be overseeing multiple locations around  Washington requiring them to move to Seattle and Jay’s father to quit his job to accommodate the family move. Although a little upset that he would have to leave Lu behind, Jay nonetheless was happy about the change due to the opportunity to meet new gays and potentially have a boyfriend and intimate partner (keeping the latter a secret from his parents). In the next few weeks after selling their house and packing their belongings en route Jay finds that his new school also has a Queer-Straight Alliance further exciting him and the idea of making new queer friends (also making him realize that he also desires a queer family as well rather than just a gay boyfriend). After settling into their furnished duplex, Jay begins his first day of school where he accidentally gets shoved on the ground by a printer on wheels. The owner was an Asian man named Albert who possessed an irresistible charm to Jay and even offered to carry his books for him when Jay’s hand was scraped from the fall but Jay declined (mostly out of fear of Albert seeing his written Gay Agenda). Nonetheless, Jay was both happy and embarrassed by the ordeal but decided to reason against pursuing Albert believing him to be straight, and moved on. While adjusting to his classes, Jay suddenly meets and befriends Max a blond genderqueer man with an adequate amount of lay of the land. He accurately deduces Jay’s crush on Albert and confirms to him that Albert is gay when he joins the Queer Straight Alliance. While conversing, Jay unintentionally lets his “Gay Agenda” slip shocking Max who after pestering, takes a look at it and agrees to become his “gay guide” and help him accomplish all that needs to be checked off. When the QSA starts, it is revealed that they are in charge of planning the homecoming dance. With no one willing to go against Max and Jay as presidents of the committee, the 2 are elected by default. When the idea of a theme came up, Jay suggested a “hindsight is 20/20” theme where people dress up as couples they wish to end up together. Despite some resistance from “Ariel” everyone else is fond of the idea and agrees with Jay. With Max assigning everyone positions he puts both Jay and Albert together selling tickets. After catching both Jay and Albert flirting, Max assures the former that Albert is indeed attracted to him as he hasn’t seen Albert flirting with anyone since he broke up with his last boyfriend Kyler. Later Jay Skypes Lu after returning home although he is taken aback by Lu admitting to her fight with Chip, he still shares with her his experiences with Albert and the QSA. Jay learns that his town’s hoedown is on October 9th the same date as the homecoming dance. Nervous, Jay lies that the date is on the 16th instead before suddenly ending the call as Lu begins to question his awkward behavior. Now Jay began to be conflicted between bailing on his best friend or potentially ruining his chances of making his mark in high school and completing his gay agenda. The next day, Jay is taking a Fashion Design class with Max (along with surprisingly most of the football team) which takes place on a different campus, he meets Damon and Reese (both of whom cause a strange distant reaction from Max) the latter taking a visible disliking towards Jay and the former advising him to watch over Max since he shut out Damon and his sister Cami since his breakup. Jay was unable to gain answers when they were interrupted by the teacher leaving deep in thought by the time the class ended. Max offered to take Jay to a drag show where he intended to hire a DJ for homecoming as well as introduce Jay to a new guy and cross off a new item on his gay agenda. Sometime later, Jay and Albert were both selling tickets to homecoming, Albert was noticeably distracted on his phone despite numerous attempts from Jay to get his attention. After bumping into the table and sending the cash box flying to the ground he explains that he was playing Digimals a video game that expanded to app development. After obtaining an egg, he began to do a cute little dance he dubbed the “digihips”. Jay caught up in the moment accidentally lets it slip that he was checking out Albert causing some embarrassment from him. Before Albert could say anything the bell rang and people began swarming to grab tickets from the boys. After that was over, Jay was worried that he may have blown his chance with Albert however instead Albert invited him out on a “date” to play digimals with him since they’re releasing a rare Digimal creature on Sunday. After playfully using his “digihips” to sway him, Jay excitedly agreed. Later on, Max takes Jay out to a club where after meeting and doing a brief show with a Drag performer “Tuna Turner” does a rendition of the song Proud Mary (with Jay failing to recognize the song despite being familiar with it) he then meets Max’s friend Tony, who stands taller than Jay (like most guys), has perfect skin and green eyes. He almost immediately begins flirting with Jay and makes it clear that he is checking him out leaving Jay almost unable to move. Despite unintentionally offending Tony by referring to his fraternity house as a frat, he corrects him by stating they are a brotherhood and invites them both out to his party on the following Friday. Max and Jay both accept (partly for Max to do research on a proper theme for homecoming and mostly to help give Jay some experience with other guys). By the time Tony left, Jay was still awestruck to the point where he accidentally called “Tuna” Tony who amusingly comments to Max on Jay being “dicknotized”. The next day, Jay was eagerly waiting for his date with Albert despite being excited (to the point where he wouldn’t stop talking about it to Max) his high hopes were dashed when he saw Albert was with other people including Reese to his visible disappointment. Although worried that he might’ve been friend-zoned he nonetheless makes the most of it and interacts with Albert’s friends Shruti Dhawan & Regina Walsh before proceeding on their Digimal mission (annoying passerby in the process). While Reese helps set up Jay’s Digimal account, Jay inquires about Albert’s friendship with Reese. Albert explains that Reese’s acting gigs prevented him from joining their Digimal hunts and only recently returned. When Reese gives Jay his phone back, it asks for his username. The Digigang explains that it defines who they are as people. However Jay is unsure, fortunately, the focus is diverted when Reese turns their attention to the game. Because Jay was distracted he nearly fell down a flight of stairs before being saved by Albert. Grateful he asked about his username and Albert explained that he was undecided because he did not know exactly who or what he was going to be. Jay emphasizes and explains that he’s in the same boat because of his background of being the new kid who’s into stats and math. Jay’s connection with Albert even makes him consider revealing the gay agenda to him but decides against it feeling that would be coming too strong. When the 2 lean in for a kiss, Reese suddenly texts him about their whereabouts inciting them to return to their Digigang. When they are in eyesight but out of earshot, Albert takes the time to officially Jay out on a real date. Before verbally agreeing Jay gets the idea to make his username title “seizethejay” in inspiration of waiting for the first to happen and figuring out the process. Despite having an amazing weak meeting with VSBs (very cute boys), Jay still dreaded having to tell Lu about what was going on, only to be hit with an email about the nail salon Tough As Nails being shut down. Knowing this is bad news, Jay immediately calls Lu to figure out what to do next, however, he finds the situation to be even worse when Lu drops the bomb that Chip had broken up with her but does not elaborate instead merely expressing hope that Jay can return to help with the hoe down costumes. Jay still kept his true feelings hidden and merely vaguely agreed. Feeling conflicted he tries to consult with Max about his dilemma but is only left with a new problem when Max is noticeably upset and completely throws up in SIF before bolting away. Jay and Damon offer to go check on him. While walking Damon offers insight into Max’s situation explaining that hasn’t been the same since his breakup with none other than Reese and pulls up a meme of him looking completely disheveled and sobbing uncontrollably over a bucket of fries. Despite a majority of the school siding with Max on the situation, he began to shut people out because of his desire to not look weak in front of everyone and avoid his problems. Upon further thinking about the situation, Damon decided to head back to class feeling he would only make it worse compared to Jay who serves as a neutral ground between Max and everything else. Unable to find Max anywhere at school, he checks Max’s home (as they live not too far apart from each other) where his stepmother lets him upstairs and sees Max completely pale. Max explains that he and Reese dated during Junior year and even gave him golden bracelets that he continues to wear, but had broken up so Reese can focus on his acting career feeling his relationship will get in the way of that. Despite his loved ones reaching out, Max’s way of coping with the situation is to forget he ever had a boyfriend. However, Max makes it clear he’s still hungover Reese and begins cyberstalking his Instagram believing a guy named Spencer is Max’s new boyfriend making Max feel even worse under the belief that Reese doesn’t care about him. Suddenly getting an idea, Max suggests that he and Jay go to the homecoming dance to beat Reese at the contest. Jay considers it due to the date of the event being on the same day as the Hoedown. Despite not wanting to let Lu down. He also doesn’t want to lose Max as a friend and gay guide and decides to oblige but is uncertain how to inform Lu of his decision. During SIF, Jay was trying to get his tote and materials but Damon and his friends from the football team were in the way and completely ignore Jay when he tries to get by causing him to resort to climbing under them when suddenly, Damon accidentally smacks Jay flat on butt shocking all 4 of the boys. Despite Damon being embarrassed over the incident, Jay nervously shrugs it off (internally admitting to enjoying the grip) before asking him for his tote. While Damon was rambling on trying to deescalate any perceived tensions or misunderstandings, Jay gets an idea on how to get out of the hoedown situation which is to get closer to either Tony or Albert and figure out which boy suits him best as a boyfriend, giving him an excuse to not go to the hoedown. On the day of Tony’s party… while Max is off to make observations for the homecoming dance, Jay and Tony spend time alone. Despite Jay’s doubts about seeing Tony and Albert, Max assured him that as a single man, he is still fair game to everyone including Tony. With that in mind, Jay and Tony spend time flirting with each other at the party until the 2 briefly get separated while pushing through the crowd trying to find a private place to talk together. Nonetheless, when Tony grabs Jay into his arms, Jay musters up the courage to kiss Tony passionately on the lips giving Jay his first kiss and crossing yet another item off his gay agenda. As the 2 continued making out, Tony was unfortunately called back due to someone puking in another area. Annoyed Tony gives Jay his number and promises to continue their intimacy the following weekend to which Jay wholeheartedly agrees. Despite the excitement coursing through Jay, he knew he had to tell Lu of his crossing items off his gay agenda, Max also confirms that Tony is a no-strings-attached type of person and is purely interested in sexual thrill rather than anything serious. Undeterred, Jay attempts to contact Lu for the next few days but to his growing worry he has not gotten a response from her. On the day of Jay’s date with Albert, the 2 at Jay’s request head down to GameWorks where Albert pays for their unlimited game passes and the 2 begin to play arcade games together (despite Jay’s inexperience). During the date, Albert begins to make his feelings for Jay clear when the 2 gazes into each other’s eyes more often throughout the day and even hold hands. Eventually, the 2 sit together on a Jurassic World ride where they have their first kiss to Jay’s overjoyment. After the date, it was Jay’s birthday and his father surprised him with an everything bagel as well as a gift card for a plane ticket to see Lu whenever he desires (provided he doesn’t miss school). Grateful for the gift, Jay inquires about his mother (who had to deal with an incident at work) wondering if his dad misses her to which he responds that he does since they are in an unfamiliar environment and wishes to explore it with his spouse but understands that she needs to help provide for the family and tries not to think of it much, knowing Jay will soon understand when he meets the man of his dreams. At school, Jay is still perturbed by his dad’s words and Lu’s unexplained absence when Max arrives and also wishes him a happy birthday. Max also notices Jay’s unsettled behavior and informs Jay that he’s done all he can to get in contact with Lu and can only wait. Changing the subject and to take his mind off things he brings up Reese and Spencer going to homecoming together as Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. Jay attempts to get Max to open up more about Reese but Max immediately shuts it down and leaves for class. When Jay attempts to go to class he is suddenly stopped by the School Secretary who takes him to the office informing them of a call waiting for him. Confused and nervous he answers the phone only to discover Lu on the other line. She explained that their phones had been cut off and she could not contact Jay until the following Monday to explain the situation. Unwilling to hear Jay moan about the situation she inquires about his life. Jay, deciding to rip the bandaid off, confesses he cannot go to the hoedown because they are on the same date. This information both hurts and bewilders Lu knowing it’s very unlike Jay to get the dates mixed up. Nonetheless, she expresses displeasure with Jay not being able to make it because of circumstances. Jay getting a little upset reminds Lu that she bailed on him to go with Chip but Lu defends herself saying she was going with her boyfriend feeling such was natural to spend time together and make memories. This makes Jay feel very sorry that he began to doubt Lu but plays the same card and lies to her that he’s going to homecoming with his “boyfriend”, Albert. The plan works and Lu ultimately resigns, visibly defeated but still encourages Lu to go to homecoming. Despite having gotten what he wanted, Jay still feels guilty for lying to his best friend to excuse himself as well as doubting that she was ever there for him. He felt just the same all day and was unable to consult with Max who had to get decorating supplies for the dance in question or Albert who was tied up in Robotic Club leaving Jay alone with his thoughts. The day wasn’t a total disappointment as during his final period in Civics & Current Events, Jay (and the amused class & bewildered teacher) was visited by a printer bot containing a brand new bag for Jay and a note from Albert who explained that Max told him it was Jay’s birthday and makes a grand gesture by asking him to homecoming. Feeling better and appreciating the gesture, Jay verbally and physically agrees. Jay’s excitement over his date with Albert had left his mind slip about his date with Tony. Although still holding doubts about being unfaithful to Albert, Max reminds Jay that he’s still single and Jay agrees to the date. On the day of although Jay is satisfied with finally having sex for the first time, Jay’s attraction to Tony does however diminish a bit when he finds how little they have in common (as well as Tony not being a man of chilvery) with Tony not liking to dress up as well as being tardy on his work resulting in them going to a confusing movie initially for Tony’s class assignments. Despite this, Jay enjoyed sharing his first time with Tony and relayed his experience to Max. When Max reveals that he’s still a virgin, Jay begins to feel a little upset at Max’s credibility as a gay guide but backs down when Max confesses he is still discovering what he likes to do sexually. As the 2 continued to talk, Max abruptly swears in disbelief at an interesting sight… Reese and Spencer on a commercial. Exasperated, Max returns upstairs to his room where after venting to Jay the 2 begin to brainstorm costume ideas for homecoming. After rejecting many ideas, Jay (gaining inspiration from his night with Tony) comes up with the idea of dressing up like a giant buttcheek which deems ridiculous but a brilliant idea. Over the next few days, Jay began going on dates with Albert whilst hooking up with Tony. Here the former confesses his relationship issues as his former boyfriend was rushing things and broke up with him since he wanted to slow everything down after sex causing Albert to vow to never limit himself to please others but feels he can be himself around Jay. Jay considers telling Albert about Tony but chooses to continue keeping it a secret to avoid alienating Albert. After days of dating Albert and hooking up with Tony, Jay was with Max still designing the costume for Homecoming when he suddenly gets a call from Lu who explained her unfortunate circumstance that she had just been evicted from her trailer and she and her Aunt were forced to live in the salon until their lease is up. Being on speaker, Max can hear the entire conversation, he attempts to verbally ease her mind by suggesting she come to Seattle to accompany Jay and witness him ask Albert to be his boyfriend. Lu hears everyone and makes her question Jay over his deceitfulness. Jay tries to reason with Lu but inadvertently brings up him hooking up with Tony making her even more upset beyond reasoning. Furious at Jay’s lies, Lu angrily cuts ties with him and refuses to answer his calls leaving Jay disheartened. Sparing Max his despair and acknowledging his deceit he sends him out and later hooks up with Tony to take his mind off his troubles only for Jay’s problems to grow even worse when Tony’s boyfriend Dylan shows up after correctly deducing that Tony was hooking up with Jay. Appalled at Tony’s deceit and infidelity, Jay quickly leaves to avoid Dylan’s wrath only to be caught off guard when he meets Reese and Spencer at the same dorm due to Spencer’s desire to rush the fraternity and check out the place. Tony and Dylan later catch up and Tony verbally tells everyone he was only hooking up with Jay to fulfill his gay agenda that Max showed. Naturally, this makes Jay very upset especially since Max swore to keep it a secret and the fact that Reese was witnessing the entire event unfold. This causes Dylan to fall back and a despaired Jay to leave discovering texts from Albert who attempted to visit him for a date making him even more upset at having blown him off and immediately figures that Reese told Albert what happened thus straining his relationship as well as his relationship with Max for breaking Jay’s trust. Over the next few days, things were no better as Jay had not heard from Lu, Albert was very disappointed in Jay’s deceit and the idea of being used, and Jay had completely shut everyone else out including Max himself not accepting his excuse and believing he corrupted the gay agenda and potentially destroyed his relationships. After Lu had blocked Jay’s number and Max finally gave up trying to reconcile, Jay finds himself in conversation with Damon. Jay questions why he wants to reconnect with Max so much to which Damon replies that to him he’s family as he helped encourage Damon as a cheerleader alongside Cami and deeply desires Max to help himself from time to time instead of helping everyone else. Jay remained defiant until Damon reminded him that the hurt he caused Albert has nothing to do with Max and reminded him that everything that happened was always his choice as he chose to continuously hook up with Tony despite still seeing Albert and having no real reason to aside from just having sex. Damon also sadly notes that Max’s attempts to reconcile are especially important since he had shut everyone else out even when they tried to reach out. After returning home on a rainy day, Jay gets into conversation with his father airs out his troubles, and apologizes for bailing on him, upon watching a football game, Jay has a spark of inspiration and immediately sets out to make a new “Apology Agenda”. To start he gives Max a chance to redeem himself by inviting both him and Damon to the house. After apologizing to Max for blowing up at him, Damon calls Cami and she scolds Max for shutting them all out and calls out his ridiculous excuse but agrees to give him another chance. Jay observes the whole thing and realizes this is exactly what happened between him and Lu and their connection gives Jay hope he can work things out with Lu. The next day, the 2 walks into school with “butt implants” and meet with Reese after getting butt jokes out the way, Max admits he does miss Reese and requests a do-over promising to make more benefits for his relationship and career. Reese also apologized for his behavior and blaming Max for his issues and agreed to help Jay (alongside Shruti and Regina) via an automated roller chair make his way to Albert’s civics class where Jay dramatically apologized to Albert and gave him a list of adjectives before leaving (and getting detention for the costume). After detention the 2 finally talk and have an honest conversation, while still upset at Jay for lying he forgives him and the 2 share a kiss. Albert again invites Jay to dance at homecoming to make up for it but Jay refuses because of his desire to make up with Lu (earning him a more passionate kiss in response). Driving back to Riverton, Jay finally meets up with Lu (still wearing his buttcheek costume) although naturally upset, she winds down as they both begin to talk out their issues. Lu made it clear she was very upset over Jay lying to her to protect her feelings instead of being honest. As the 2 tearfully embrace she reminds Jay that he missed his homecoming but Jay reiterates that he came home for her. The 2 arrive at their hoedown with Jay’s “Great Behind” costume being painted to resemble an Apple. As Old Town Road by Lil Nas X and Billy Rae Cyrus began to play the 2 however did not win as they arrived too late, despite Jay despairing, Lu remained unfazed reminding him she was just happy to share the experience with her best friend. Having learned not to hide parts of his feelings and himself for the sake of others, Jay accepted the loss and agreed to be more honest and be there for Lu when things get rough. She also mentions that she and her Aunt Carol have been invited to stay in a neighbor’s RV expressing hope for a turnaround for next year as she had received a Washington State College Journalism Association scholarship for an article she had written allowing her to attend college only intentionally keeping that from Jay as payback. The 2 continued dancing and talked about everything that happened the past month. The next day, Jay had to leave to make up for the work he had missed but promised to be more active with Lu and virtually do some of the things they used to do before Jay had left. Jay had also regifted the airline ticket he was given to Lu for her to visit him in Seattle. Having completed the Apology Agenda, Jay returns home thinking to himself that rather than needing a gay agenda he desires to create a Jay Agenda for himself. Upon arriving home, Jay has another surprise when he sees Albert waiting for him in the pouring rain. Inquiring about homecoming, Albert responds neutrally before stating it’s not over yet as Jay still owes him a dance, thus the 2 begin to dance in the pouring rain as the book comes to an end with Jay being sure that Albert would be his “first love”.

Thoughts:

My first queer book… I liked to read before I read the book but to be honest I haven’t successfully finished a book since I read The Bully in the 11th Grade (purely for entertainment, not a school requirement). Fast forward to 2022, I’m with my husband (not my actual husband for you new bloggers just an affectionate term for my close friend) Andrew around Doylestown (before heading to watch Bob’s Burgers: The Movie) and we check out this bookstore with all sorts of books. It was June so they had a queer section. They had a couple of books and none of them stood out more than Jay’s Gay Agenda. It had my nickname and I loved the title so I bought it with little money I had and decided to read it on the train ride home. I was pretty invested although my ADHD kept distracting me now and again. Like “The Sky Blues” after it, I spent one night reading the entire book to the point where I barely got any sleep until much later. I kind of like the high school sweetheart story it possessed and it became my favorites. I even brought a virtual version of the book on my iPhone. As of now, I read the book 3 times. Although it’s no longer my top favorite (that honor is now reserved for “All That’s Left in the World”) it now remains in my top 20 collection at no. 11. To be honest a book like that kind of made me long for my own sweetheart story (one I almost got by the end of the year unexpectedly) and being able to have that crazy cliche romantic story in the rain just like Albert and Jay did at the end. What stands out is how queer it is and opens up about the dangers of hooking up with people and unintentionally hurting others by sneaking around and keeping parts of yourself hidden. It’s a great read though and helps open up some fantasy perspectives and made me enjoy reading more. Fast forward I read many more gay books, been in more queer relationships and this book had Lowkey lost its luster to me. I think it’s better than the cliche high school gay dramas like Gay Love and Other Stories yea but overall I guess because I lived a little more and I’ve grown since first buying this book. It’s special to me and I loved the name… like Out of the Blue it’s a little cheesy but I think I like that book a lot more because of the fantasy. I know how Jay feels, a friend of mine from Tinder named Nick is also from the country (Kentucky to be exact), he’s gay, very horny, owns a Tesla, loves to paint his nails, wears crop tops talks with an accent and white as every color in the spectrum. He also hates being country and wants to be a city boy like myself. He’s amusing but his time out in the country helps me understand more of Jay’s plight. He’s a gay guy who needs an escape from a mundane life for something more connected and fast-paced. I sure hope the best for Nick and hope he finds more of what he’s looking for cause he has said a lot about himself, some would shock you!

Rating:

7/10

Characters:

• Jay Collier: The main protagonist of the book. His real name remains unknown (implied to be named after the author himself). He had his “gay-awakening” at a Shawn Mendes concert and later came out to his best friend Lu alongside his parents and the entire school eventually. He originates from a county town in Riverton, Washington, and is somewhat saddened over the fact that he is the only gay kid in town and regularly dealt with being stereotyped as a gay man (though ironically he is quite fond of and exhibits some of the stereotypes he’s regularly grouped into). He was happy when his family was allowed to move to Seattle despite this meaning he would be separated from his best friend Lu. Having grown up in a town heavily populated by Mormons and Catholics, Jay shies away from explicit cursing and replaces the word fuck with “frack”. He is also revealed to be great at numbers and is an expert mathematician (even winning 2 competitions at the Washington Association of Mathematics) and often calculates statistics or makes lists in his spare time (implying he suffers from OCD). One of his lists includes a (frequently updating) Gay Agenda which is his deepest desires as a gay man including befriending other gays, slow dancing, and losing his virginity. Upon moving to Seattle he begins to explore his gay agenda with the help of Max. However, because Jay was caught up in fulfilling his gay agenda he began to neglect other people’s feelings especially Albert and Lu due to his desire for a perfect gay life. Upon blowing off Lu and Albert unintentionally as well as briefly cutting ties with Max in response to his gay agenda being blurted out to Tony, he immediately began to regret his mistakes. Damon later got into conversation with him and reminded Jay that Max was only trying to help but at the end of the day he chose to still see Tony and lie to everyone else instead of telling the truth. Max also called Jay out for his hypocrisy causing Jay to see the error of his ways and begin using his talents and resources to help Max reconcile with his friends and later reconnect with Albert and Lu though Jay had to bail on the former to go to the hoedown with his best friend (which Albert completely understood). By the end of the book, Jay had successfully reconciled with his friends and began because Albert may be his first love.

• Albert Huang: Jay’s love interest and high school sweetheart. He is of Chinese descent and stands taller than Jay (see cover). He’s also gay and a member of the Queer-Straight Alliance in his school just like Max. He’s also a tech nerd that’s into robotics similar to how Jay is into statistics and numbers. Before meeting Jay, according to Max, Albert previously dated a boy named Kyler but the 2 had broken up after having sex for the first time due to Albert’s desire to slow things down making Albert promise to himself not to limit himself for the sake of other people. Max said that he hasn’t taken an interest in anyone since. Albert also distaste being sexualized but he cannot help making statements that sound suggestive (to his ire). Albert is also a part of the Digigang where he alongside his fellow friends Shruti, Regina, & (sometimes) Reese look for new Digimals. He even has a dance which he affectionately calls “digihips” every time he wins a new digimal egg. He meets Jay by chance on his first day of school when he trips over his printer bot on wheels and winds up flirting with him. Max to help them grow closer to each other winds up pairing them together and selling homecoming tickets (although due to his connection with Reese he also backhandedly attempted to shift Jay toward Tony). Eventually when Jay accidentally makes it known that he is attracted to Albert inciting him to invite him out on a couple of dates even gifting Jay a bag and requesting a dance at homecoming. Their budding relationship had temporarily becomes strained when he learns from Reese about his gay agenda and Jay hooking up with another man behind his back. To make it right, Jay makes a big gesture and puts his costume-making skills to use by apologizing to Albert and getting a detention for wearing 2 voluminous butt cheeks. Accepting Jay’s apology he has a real conversation with him asking him to be open and honest about his relationships because they weren’t exclusive yet. Despite asking Jay for a dance at homecoming, Jay refused due to his desire to make things right with Lu earning himself a passionate kiss from Albert who quickly accepted the excuse. Despite that Albert still waited for Jay’s return despite being drenched by the pouring rain and asked for dance anyway making Jay ponder on finally finding his first love. 

• Max Knudson: A genderqueer person who quickly became Jay’s close friend and first friend after his move to Seattle. He is loosely based on the Author Jason June who is also genderqueer. He has a big habit of saying “Lord and Taylor” as a catchphrase and expression. Before meeting Jay, Max dated Reese even buying him gold bracelets that he continues but because of Reese’s acting career, he had to focus on due to Max distracting him which resulted in them breaking up. Max started cyberstalking Reese and upon seeing him with Spencer he had concluded that he was tired of Max when that wasn’t the case as Reese and Spencer were friends and he wanted to speak to someone with no connection to Max. Reese had also grown spiteful due to the breakup resulting in Max feeling even worse but all the same both men still deeply missed each other. According to Damon, Max was beloved by everyone but he also hated being seen as weak, and when a Twitter meme composed of him crying with a French fry in his mouth surfaced despite everyone’s sympathy. Max refused to acknowledge them, instead shutting everyone including Damon and his best friend Cami out despite their best efforts under the pretext of him working on himself and forgetting he ever had a boyfriend hence why he began to connect more with Jay who served as a neutral party to everything seeing as he was the new kid. He offered to be his “Gay guide” after Jay accidentally let his “gay agenda” slip with Max offering to help Jay achieve his dreams by introducing him to Tony. In return, Jay helped Max design a costume for homecoming with the pair going as a Giant butt. However, their friendship became strained when Tony told Jay about his gay agenda (for selfish reasons because he wanted Jay to have no connection with Albert) causing an incensed Jay to distance himself from Max and refuse to hear him out despite Max’s many pleas causing him to later give up trying. However, upon talking to his dad and Damon, he later came to forgive Max, understanding he was only trying to help and was remorseful for being a jerk towards him. But in an effort tohave Max finally face his feelings, he invites Damon (who FaceTimed Cami) to finally work out his grievances. Despite Max’s less-than-excusable actions, they agree to give him another chance on the pretext of being open with them. Wearing the giant butt costume, Max finally reconnects with Reese and both apologized for their behavior and later help Jay apologize to Albert (getting himself a detention in the process) before going to homecoming with Reese. 

• Lu Fuhrman: Jay’s best friend from Riverton since Kindergarten. They had known each other for twelve years. She had lost her parents to a car crash when she was an infant and was taken in by her Aunt Carol when she was only 19. Lu is described (and depicted on the cover) as a red-haired woman roughly Jay’s height. From Jay’s account, she has a nervous tick that causes her to click her nails every time she’s invested in something. She’s also attentive to detail much like Jay is and it’s because of that she worked as a journalist in Riverton High which later earned her a scholarship. However, Lu and her family (much like half of the community in Riverton) fall under the poverty line and she regularly works at a nail salon to make ends meet. Because the owner is very old and refuses to upgrade to compete with rival shops, Lu and her Aunt do not get a lot of customers aside from ailing regulars making money extremely tight for them which later culminated in them being evicted from their trailer. Despite this, she asserts herself as a “strong woman” and can handle disappointment. Jay, however, frequently felt compelled to protect Lu’s feelings (despite her explicitly telling him not to) and because of his desires to complete his gay agenda and ask Albert out to prom (knowing it would conflict with his plans to show up to the Hoedown with Lu) this however led to Jay lying and claiming that Albert was his boyfriend (when he wasn’t at the time). Eventually while on a call with Jay, Max accidentally let it slip that Jay had lied to her about the situation causing an argument between the 2 ending with Lu frustratingly cutting ties with Jay and subsequent events leading to Albert distancing from Jay and Jay blaming Max for the incident. After reconciling with Max and Albert, Jay unable to bear the thought of losing his best friend returns to Riverton to make things right with Lu. Although reasonably upset and not even willing to look Jay in the eye, she calms down as they both begin to cry and address their feelings. 

• Damon Alexander: A boy around the same age and height as Jay. He is black described by Jay as physically fit and his hair is twisted and bleached at the top. He and Max have a complicated relationship as his breakup caused him to shut everyone out including Damien and his elder sister Cami despite their frequent attempts to reconnect. He seems kind and friendly, making peaceful conversation with Jay and helping him understand Max’s intentions for his Gay Agenda. He described Max as family and deeply cares for him since he was supportive of his attempts to join the football team. Despite Max shutting him out, Damon never truly gave up on trying and with Jay’s help managed to successfully get Max to address his issues with Damon and Cami.

• Reese Buttersworth: Max’s ex-boyfriend. Jay describes him with piercing blue eyes and blond hair. Reese is shown to be spiteful and a bit rude particularly towards Jay and Max although this in part was due to mistaking Jay as Max’s new boyfriend. Max states he was very supportive and kind to him before however Reese’s acting career got in the way of his relationship and his agent threatened to drop him if he remained unfocused though he regretted doing so he was forced to break up with Max. Upon realizing the misunderstanding he became somewhat kinder to Jay but remained loyal to Albert as his friend and was protective of his feelings. He was the first outside of Tony and Max to find out about the Gay Agenda after Tony blurted it out to ease things between them. Reese seemed appalled and somewhat saddened at Jay’s deceit towards Albert and later informed him of the story. When Jay met them again, he once again acted rude and condescending towards him until Jay finally told him to shut up and reminded him that Max hates him hurting Reese’s feelings. When Jay pointed out his relationship with Spencer, Albert later clarified the misunderstanding explaining that they’re just friends since he felt lonely after dumping Max and since everyone at school had a connection with him he felt the need to isolate himself from everyone and spend more time with Spencer who had no connection with Max. The 2 later reconcile at the end with Reese making more of an effort to benefit both their relationship and career.

• Tony: A friend of Max’s who serves as Jay’s first hook-up and former friend-with-benefits. He is taller than Jay (as most guys are) and has stubble and blond hair. Although charming and sensual (and a little understanding) helping Jay fulfill his gay agenda, he’s shown to be deceitful, manipulative, and disloyal as well as somewhat pathetic he went behind his boyfriend Dylan’s back and slept around with at least 16 other guys and lied to him about it. It comes to a point where even his fraternity is well aware of his actions and encourages them. He is also implied to be a narcissistic person and full of himself as well as Jay saw a bunch of pictures of him around his wall and his Instagram and not one even alluded to his relationship with Dylan showing him to be a toxic boyfriend in general who seems to enjoy the idea of having a boyfriend rather than appreciating him. Dylan’s anger towards Jay and his dialog seems to highlight that. He also broke a promise to Max to keep the gay agenda a secret showing he doesn’t care much for his friends either. Originally to help Jay with his Gay Agenda (and attempt to separate him and Albert), Max helps set Jay up with Tony (inadvertently revealing it to him despite Jay’s wishes to keep it secret). Tony was attracted to Jay and the feeling was very much mutual however as Max warned, Tony is actually a man of sexual pleasure and is purely out for the thrills rather than romance. This makes him an obvious disconnect from Jay who later finds this out firsthand and worse discovers that Tony has a boyfriend named Dylan who quickly attempts to beat up Jay after getting “caught in the act”. In an effort to turn the situation away from him, Tony attempts to pin it on Jay and Max by making it seem like Jay was the one trying to sway Tony (though of course Dylan easily saw through his lies after Jay admitted ignorance). This later caused a fallout between Max and Jay as well as Jay and Albert (as Reese was nearby witnessing the whole event). What became of Tony is unknown but it’s strongly implied Jay had cut ties with him afterwards and Dylan had dumped him as he was last seen crying over the event. Tony seems to parallel and represent what Jay could’ve become had he become emotionally distant from others as he outright lied to everyone including the man he’s in a relationship with to have sex with other guys and please himself blissfully ignorant of the pain he was causing and pathetically attempted to spin to make it seem like Jay was the one at fault instead of taking responsibility and owning up to his mistake when put on the spot.