Page 11 of Fall of Us
“What are you hungry for?” I asked once I finally looped my arm through his. When Brandon leaned into my side, there was a rightness to it. He’d always felt right next to me; like we were born to fit together like this. We belonged to one another, and I desperately wanted to make that happen, but I also had to respect his boundaries. It was always tough to balance between respect for my best friend and desperately wanting him more than that.
He sighed as we continued to walk. “Honestly, I could eat anything. If we’re heading down closer to the water, maybe we can eat at one of the seafood places? Maybe get a good northwest cioppino?”
A good fish stew did sound amazing and perfect for the cooler afternoon. The clouds were rolling in and the smell of petrichor in the air hinted at rain.
Sure enough, the second we ducked into the doorway at a little mom-and-pop shop, the sky opened up and big fat droplets fell from the sky. People rushed to duck into different stores, but it was easier to spot the true Pacific Northwesterners who continuedon their walks without a care in the world. A little rain never hurt anyone.
Once we ordered our bowls of stew at the counter and sat at a table, Brandon pulled out his phone and started scrolling. I couldn’t stop staring at him. The way the light from the screen glinted off his glasses lit up his entire face. I probably looked like a giant creep just sitting there and staring at him, but I’d always found Brandon attractive.
“What?” he finally asked, looking up from his phone.
I looked away and let out a small laugh. “Nothing. I was thinking how nice it is to do this with just the two of us.”
Brandon’s smile was bright again, just like when I’d given him the book that now sat on the table between us. “We do this often. What’s different this time?”
I shrugged. I wanted to call this a date, but that was impossible. To prevent myself from saying or doing something stupid, I fished my phone from my pocket and joined Brandon in the world of doom scrolling. Maybe it defeated the purpose of spending time together when we weren’t exactly talking, but I was content to be in his presence. Wasn’t that enough?
Our soup came out, and we ate in silence. Brandon opened his book and read a few more pages, laughing occasionally about how clumsy the bookstore owner was. This was perfect. I wanted to go through life like this, with my best friend by my side enjoying the little things like fish soup and books on a rainy afternoon.
Chapter 8
Brandon
“So that’s it. We ate soup, and I read...”
Chase crossed his arms over his chest as he sat back in his chair. “It could have been a date.”
“But was it? We didn’t plan it. He showed up at the shop out of nowhere...”
“And he bought you the book and took you to lunch. Sometimes dates are spontaneous. I swear, if Nate planned everything, our sex life wouldn’t be nearly as much fun.”
I wrinkled my nose. Chase was easy to talk to, but since I’d gotten to know him a bit better over the last couple of months, I’d learned more about my friends’ bedroom preferences than I ever wanted to know. The two of them were daring, and I’d never dream of doing half the shit they’d done.
An argument broke out at the bar, causing both of us to turn around. Daniel’s arms were flailing as he yelled at Shawn. His face was so red while Shawn remained impassive. Well, not quite impassive, but more like smug that Daniel gotso riled up.
“I better get back to work before those two either kill each other or get fired. It’s up in the air which will happen first.”
I laughed as Chase got up from the table and rounded the bar. He grabbed Daniel by the arm and dragged him through the double doors to the kitchen. Shawn shrugged, picked up a glass, and went back to cleaning it. What had they been fighting about now?
Shawn looked up and spotted me watching him. He grabbed a bottle and some mixer from the shelves and made a drink before bringing it over to me. “A tequila sunrise on the house.”
I took the glass and smiled. “I’m a little concerned about how often you comp our drinks.”
Shawn shrugged. “My dad owns the place. I figure as long as I don’t piss him off too much, I can treat my friends every once in a while.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to ask him about Daniel, but it didn’t feel right. Instead, I took a sip of the drink and gave him a thumbs-up. It was sweet and disguised the liquor perfectly. I liked tequila, and it was typically my drink of choice. He must have noticed me order it whenever I’d come in.
“Thank you,” I said as I turned back to the table. Despite talking to Chase, I was still confused about what had happened the other day. Going out for lunch felt like it was more somehow, but that couldn’t be right. Maybe I was projecting because I wanted more, but this lifelong friendship thing was still holding me back. I really needed to get past that.
Then it hit me. I stared at the drink in my hand and then turned to look at Shawn, who was back at the bar, cleaning glasses. He looked up and winked. Was he flirting with me? There was no way.
My fingers fumbled for the phone in my pocket and, without thinking, I pulled up a text thread and shot off a message to Andrew.
Me: Do you think Shawn has a thing for me?
It took several minutes for him to respond. I had to think if he was at work or not, but I was sure he was off today. He’d been complaining about his boss cutting back his hours.
The dots danced across the display and disappeared several times before a message finally appeared on the screen.
