Page 18 of Stand By Me

Back at the headquarters, Clay couldn't stop thinking about texting Mario as he worked his way through all the tasks Vic would hunt him down for. Once he was finally done with those, he headed to the gym upstairs in the hope of a better distraction.

"Someone's in a good mood," Martinez greeted him with from his place spotting Jeremy, and suddenly everyone who wasn't handling over two hundred pounds of weights looked towards him.

Clay was glad he didn't have Mario's pale skin, because he'd have been red like a tomato right now.

"Yeah, well," he said, trying for nonchalance. "It's a nice day."

He knew he wasn't the happiest those last couple of days, but the fight with Jake had really brough him low. Actively choosing not to text Jake or respond to his texts was way different than simply trying to limit them, and Clay had found himself avoiding his phone altogether.

Now, thanks to Mario, he'd managed to push it to the back of his mind and actually enjoy himself for a bit. With some of his energy back, he figured he might drop in to see Mom and Ben tonight, since he hadn't been there in over two weeks now.

"A nice day," Martinez faux-whispered to Jeremy, who rolled his eyes, but Dave and Travis next to them actually laughed.

"Leave the man alone." Dave sat up after finishing his set and accepted the towel Travis handed him. "Getting laid does wonders for a guy's mood."

"How would you know?" James tossed from his place at the leg press machine and the group whooped and laughed.

Clay chuckled as he listened to the jabs and insults that followed, glad that the heat was off of him for the moment. He had no business admitting that just getting a guy's number was enough to lift his mood.

Still, thinking about Mario kept him in high spirits for the rest of the day, and he left work much happier than he'd been when he'd arrived there in the morning. He texted his mom that he was on his way and received a bunch of excited emojis in reply.

At least one of them would be happy to see him, then.

For whatever reason, Clay had become his brother's number one enemy years ago and while he'd been hoping Ben would grow out of it, it didn't seem likely anymore. The most Clay could expect now was a cease fire, and that was on a good day.

Still, he refused to give up. He had sworn a long time ago he'd do better than his father ever had.

And he did. He'd sent money from Switzerland every month, which was enough to help put Ben through med school and allowed his mom to cut down on her hours a bit, too.

However, she refused to accept his money ever since he'd been back, insisting that with Ben working and contributing to the household now, they were fine without it

"You've done more than enough," she'd told him. "Now it's less money, more visits, you hear me?"

And so Clay made sure to drop in every two or three weeks, at least. It had been weird at the beginning to see each other so often, but it was good for him, too. He'd missed sitting at their old table and listening as his mom went on and on about what happened at her work or in the neighborhood. They'd done that through the phone as well, but it hadn't been the same.

It was always hit or miss whether his brother was going to be home or not. Clay hated to admit that sometimes he was relieved when Ben was out, but it didn't make it any less true. His mom was easy to predict and even easier to please. His brother was the exact opposite.

Tonight, Ben was there, and he narrowed his eyes as soon as their mom pointed out Clay's good mood while hugging him hello.

"Yeah, it's been a nice day." Clay went over to the kitchen sink to clean his hands and inhaled the tomato and garlic smell coming from the stove. "And what about you?"

He made sure to turn to Ben as well, when he said it, but his brother still chose to ignore him, glancing down at the plates he was holding the moment their gazes met.

"Good, good," Mom assured him, dropping the pasta into the water. "No shift until Friday, so I'm resting."

"Resting as in putting your feet up and actually resting, or as in cleaning up the house from top to bottom because you can't sit still?"

She swatted him with a dish towel. "Shut it, you. You know I'd go out of my mind if I had to sit and do nothing."

Ben looked up at that. "He spends a lot of time at his actual job sitting around, so what would he know?"

Clay held back a sigh as he took a seat at the kitchen table. There was no use of rising to that bait.

"How's the residency going?" he asked instead.

"Fine," was all he got, and Mom quickly filled the following silence.

"He's been working non-stop and hardly sleeping." She shook her head. "Now, tell us about your new job. How is it? Are the people there nice?"

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