Page 64 of Stand By Me

Clay dropped his smile, his gut twisting.

"No, no," Ben protested, leaning closer. "I didn't mean it's your fault. It's somethingIhave to figure out, especially now."

Afraid to hope but hoping nonetheless, Clay nodded.

"Okay. Like I said, I'm willing to talk more, whenever you're ready."

"I think I need some time to process what I've already learned," Ben told him and got up.

Clay followed suit.

What now?he wanted to ask, but before he could, Ben spoke up as if he'd already heard the question.

"It's still weird, but—I guess I don't really hate the idea of the two of you together. I'm not a fan, yet, but I don't hate it."

"I'll take it." Clay shoved his hands in the pockets of his sweatpants as they walked towards the door. "And I'm sure Mario will be glad to hear that, too."

Ben lowered his gaze again. "We had a bad fight. He may not be happy with anything I say."

"He'll be about that part," Clay insisted. "You'll see."

Ben paused at the door, obviously unsure what to say. Finally, he settled on, "See you around. And, you know, thanks."

"Thanks for coming," Clay told him and then stood there after his brother left, gaping at the closed door. He wasn't sure what Ben was thanking him for, or what prompted him to come over this morning, but for the first time in a long, long time, the two of them had parted on a good note.

It had to be a good sign, right?

It had to.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

I'm sorry about the shit I said. If you want to talk, today, or whenever, I'm in.

Mario sat up in his bed, staring at the new text from Ben.

The fact that he was reaching out so soonandapologizing? That was huge.

Are you free now? I could call, he replied.

Sure, it would be better to do this face to face, but Mario also didn't want to wait.

I'm a few minutes away from your place, so I could stop by, actually.

His eyebrows shot up. Had Ben made the trip in order to casually drop by?

Mario's answer was the same either way.

Great, come on over.

After jumping out of bed, Mario quickly went through his morning routine. He tried not to hope for too much, but it felt like Ben really wanted to talk and make up, which Mario was all for.

When he opened the door, they both smiled, which was already a much better start than their last meeting. The smiles started off a little unsure and small, but they grew before they even settled in the living room.

"Roberto's out?" Ben asked.

"Yeah, he's helping a friend move. Did you come here straight from the hospital?" Mario took in his tired expression and redness around the eyes. "Do you want coffee?"

"No, I just finished another one, thanks. And yeah, I was at work. There was a last minute switch. But I went over to talk to Clay, actually, before coming here."

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