Page 24 of Find Me Again

"Are you sure?" Eddie asked, then shrugged when James huffed. "I mean, I'm not saying it will, but since it has already happened, maybe it can give you some kind of closure for how things ended back then. Like closing a chapter."

Ryan wasn't sure this particular chapter could ever be closed, but he nodded, because he understood Eddie's sentiment.

"At least we don't hate each other, I guess," he finally said with a shrug. "But enough about me, I want some office gossip. Or client dirt. Give me something."

That wasn't a subtle transition at all, but James and Eddie were gracious enough to go with it and got into the latest newson Noa, the company's COO, who surprised everyone by recently eloping with a guy from New York and temporarily relocating there. The office was apparently buzzing with rumors about a possible new branch of KRK Security in New York, but Ryan was more interested in the sudden marriage part of it all, since Noa had never struck him as a spontaneous guy.

It served as a perfect distraction, too, because that whole story sounded like a plot of a movie.

And who didn't love a Christmas-style happy ending?

* * *

The call with his friends and a full night of good sleep had done wonders for Ryan's mood and energy, so the next morning he ate a quick breakfast and then grabbed a shovel to take care of the driveway. It had been snowing since last night and only stopped an hour ago, which meant a lot of snow to deal with, but Ryan didn't mind. It was a good workout, and he preferred that over running in this weather anyway.

Once he was done with his brother's driveway, he made his way to his parents' place to do the same, only to be roped into sitting down and having a hot chocolate with the family first.

It turned out to be both good and bad, though, because while the hot chocolate was absolutely delicious—as it always was, thanks to a secret family recipe—it also mellowed him down so much that he was ready to take a nap in his parents' comfortable armchair instead of shoveling snow.

In the end, he did pull himself up and out of the house, and the cold air hitting him as soon as he opened the door was enough to wake him right up. He put on the latest episode of the podcast on ancient history that he loved, and when he got into the groove, shoveling became quite a meditative task.

At least until he noticed a man in his line of vision, barely afew feet away.

Ryan snapped his head up.

It was Neil.

Neil was standing there, on Ryan's parents' driveway, and bounced back and forth on his feet as he watched him.

Another déjà vu for the books.

Ryan thrusted the shovel into the ground before pausing the podcast and taking out the earbuds.

"Hey," he offered, half a greeting, half a question.

"Hey."

Neil bounced on his feet again and, honestly, it had been silly to watch an eighteen-year-old do this, but a thirty-year-old man with the build and the height of a professional hockey player looked straight-out ridiculous like this.

What are you doing here?Ryan wondered, but preferred not to ask out loud.What's changed now, that you suddenly decided to acknowledge my existence after all those years?

"I was driving by and saw you, and I thought—" Neil paused, glancing behind Ryan towards the house, then back at him. "I was wondering if we could talk. Not here," he added quickly, "but, we could drive somewhere or…"

From the sound of it, Neil didn't have it planned at all.

"It's too cold for the hill today, so we'd have to go somewhere public," Ryan told him. "And most people around here know I'm gay. Fair warning, I guess."

Neil curled his shoulders in.

"I'm not afraid to be seen with you or anyone else who's openly gay, if that's what you're getting at. However, I am worried about people coming up for an autograph or a photo, which still happens even though everybody in this town certainly has one already." Neil grimaced briefly. "Anyway, if you don't want to talk, that's okay. Sorry for bothering you."

He took a step back and seemed ready to leave right asRyan's careful facade crumbled.

"Wait," he said, stopping Neil in his tracks. "We could drive somewhere, it's fine. If you can think of a place that's quiet, it would be great, but if there isn't one, I guess we can drive up the hill after all and stay in the car if the weather gets too bad."

Ryan could, in theory, invite Neil to his brother's house, but that was a line he wasn't ready to cross. It was already pretty much impossible to stop thinking about the guy after one meeting. To have Neil come to where Ryan had to spend the rest of his break was a recipe for a disaster.

That conversation might end up a disaster anyway, but Ryan should at least try to salvagesomeof his sanity, if not all.

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