With about an hour to spare before a departmental meeting, I ducked into the little boutique a few blocks from campus. I was in the market for a new pair of shoes, but tended to find things for Elio more often in a place like this.

Empty-handed, I made my way to the door, glancing up just as a petite young guy turned away from the register, dressed head to toe in clothes I'd seen hanging in the shop.

I smiled in a politely detached sort of way, then did something of a double-take when I realized how familiar he was.

"I—"