"Library?!"

(This is the happiest Marlo has ever seen Lev about something other than Marlo.)

"We can do that." 

He follows Lev to the library. (Lev's whole face lights up when he smiles. It's lovely.) 

The library has shelves and shelves of books; each shelf is labeled with a topic. "Classic LGBT Literature" takes up a few shelves, as does "Modern LGBT Literature" and "LGBT YA" and "LGBT Romances" and "Erotica"; there's "Queer History" and "Queer Ethnography" and "Relationship Advice" and "Sex Education." But there are also other shelves: "Atheism" and "World Religions", "Evolution" and "the Big Bang Theory", "Recovery from Trauma" and "Spiritual Abuse."

Lev makes a beeline to the "atheism" shelf, ponders it for a bit, and picks up a book called Breaking the Spell: Religion As Natural Phenomenon.

He's a little overwhelmed by the number of options but he scans the "Classic LGBT Literature" section and carefully avoids "Erotica." 

Plato's Symposium and Phaedrus! The Sonnets of Shakespeare! The Well of Loneliness! The Picture of Dorian Grey! Maurice! The collected poetry of Walt Whitman! The poetry of Sappho! The Satyricon! Edward II!

He's heard some things about Oscar Wilde but E. M. Forster is an unfamiliar name. He takes Maurice and finds a place to sit. 

Lev puts his head on Marlo's lap.

(He feels a little bit guilty, reading a book by an atheist. His parents would tell him it's a waste of time. But if there's one thing that's important, it's whether God exists, and he has to know the arguments on both sides.)

Marlo shifts so Lev will be more comfortable and pets his hair.

"Cookies for everyone!"

(Ron is wearing an apron that says World's Best Chef on it.)

Lev reads:

There is asymmetry: atheists in general welcome the most intensive and objective examination of their views, practices, and reasons . . . The religious, in contrast, often bristle at the impertinence, the lack of respect, the sacrilege, implied by anybody who wants to investigate their views.

And it feels like his heart has dropped into his stomach.

He takes a cookie and thanks Ron. 

"Are you okay?" he says, quietly, to Lev. 

He takes a cookie and doesn't really notice what it tastes like. 

"Would you still like me if I were an atheist?"

"You'd still be you." 

"I'm not sure if I'm going to be. I need to read more."

"Okay. 

Can I hug you?" 

"You can always hug me."

"If you two need anything, please don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you," to Ron, and he wraps his arms around Lev, pulls Lev all the way into his lap.

"I also have spare bedrooms, if that's more comfortable for you two."

"Is it?" he asks Lev.

"Probably? --We can take the books, right?"

"Of course."

Then Lev will collect the book and also six chocolate-chip cookies and head to the bedroom.

Marlo sits down at the foot of the bed and pulls Lev close again. 

"I love you," Lev says into his shoulder. "I kind of. Uh." He mumbles something.