It's Really Happening

I pulled Alex by the sleeve and sauntered into the living room. "Smooth," he laughed as I sat down in an armchair, "Leaving them in awkward silence."

I shrugged. "The alternative was simply walking out of the room, which I've been told is unnerving." Alex sat on the couch beside my chair and I shook my hand wonderingly. "I can barely wrap my head around this whole thing still."

"What? They're in love. They're happy. It makes perfect sense."

"Well, obviously," I agreed. "But... I guess marriage is just something that I associate with ~adults." I wiggled my fingers for emphasis; Alex snorted. "My parents are married."

"We're all adults," he reasoned. I arched an eyebrow at him. "...Technically, anyway." I leaned my chin into my hand. There was another foreign concept: being an adult. "So you don't think about you and Zack getting married?"

I rolled my head around to look at Alex, who was looking at everything around the room. Trust Gaskarth to ask serious questions without a second thought. "Not really."

"Why not?"

I thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I think in the present tense. I'm still in school, after all." I admired the 3-D puzzle sitting on the coffee table for a moment. "This sounds ludicrous even in my mind, but do you ever think about settling down, Alexander?"

Alex grinned wryly at me, leaning on the arm of the couch towards me. "You always expect so little of me, Eris dear."

"I learn from experience, you shmuck."

He laughed. "You're not Jewish."

"Well, I'd call you a wanker, but that's an uncomfortable truth I don't want to think about," I replied, grinning.

"Hey, don't use my native lingo against me, you Anglophile."

"Honey, you gave up British vernacular the first time you used the word 'bro' unironically." We both laughed after a moment. Being away from everyone else didn't change the fact that we took shots at each other. We were simply more laid back and casual with it. Somewhere along the way, it snapped into place that we were pretty damn smart, even if we didn't show it around everyone else.

Something moved in the corner of my vision. It turned out to be Abby's dad on the phone, trying to calm down her mother. Obviously the happy couple had broken the news.

"Looks like we can head back in," I noted.

We both got up and went through the dining room. "Wait." I stopped, frowning curiously at Alex, who grinned. "Scooby Doo."

I laughed. "And people say I'm weird."

But I went along with it anyway.

I admit that I hadn’t expected Abby’s dad to convince us to stay the night at his house, but I couldn’t really say no. There was the problem of leaving Dexter with the guys—he wasn’t their puppy and not their responsibility—but we sorted that out. Thank god for Rian and Zack.

I did, on the other hand, call that the guys would sneak in. I was wrong about which one, however.

Sometime in the middle of the night, I woke up to the sound of creaking floorboards. In the dark, I rolled my eyes and pretended to be asleep. Old house, tall boys... logic, children!

The lanky shape crept slowly across the room and slid into Abby's bed. They murmured back and forth for a few minutes, during which I sang very loudly in my head, and eventually settled. When I was sure Abby and Josh were asleep, I eased myself out of bed, taking the blanket with me, and quietly went downstairs.

Lying in the dark wouldn't help me get back to sleep, especially with the Happy Couple cuddling a few feet away. I padded down to the kitchen, rifled around for a drinking glass, and leaned against the counter as I drank some water.

I jumped and then froze when I heard the back door handle rattle and open. Eyes adjusted to the dark, I reached out and grabbed one of the kitchen knifes from the holder. Whoever came through the door shut it quietly and flicked on the lights.

Alex looked up at me and jerked back into the door, which made a really loud noise in the silence. "What the fuck?!" he yelled in a whisper, clutching his chest.

"Shh!" I hissed, putting the knife back.

"Why were you in the kitchen holding a knife?" Alex countered, keeping his voice low.

I crossed the floor and turned the overhead back off. "I was getting some water and thought you were a burglar! Why were you outside?"

"I couldn't sleep!" He paused, looking down. "Why are you wearing a blanket?"

"Josh woke me up when he was moving to Abby's bed," I explained, rolling my eyes. I could almost see the details of his face again.

He snickered, and I shushed him fiercely. "Alright!" he whispered. I tugged the blanket around me. "You'd like it out there. Nice night. Fucking freezing though."

"It's nighttime, genius."

"Har har. I'll go out again with you if you share the blanket."

I considered it a moment. I did enjoy looking at the stars. However as I pointed out, it was late and I needed sleep. I pressed a finger against my lips and jerked my head towards the kitchen door. We returned upstairs, tiptoeing past Abby's dad's room and into the guest room.

Dammit, I thought as Alex passed me. One bed.

"Hey, Alex?" I asked, standing uncomfortably beside the bed after I'd stood at the window while he undressed. He paused, sitting upright under the covers. "...You don't... cuddle... when you sleep, do you?"

"Uh… Only if it's Jack," he joked.

I was incredibly happy—ecstatic, really— to be back in my apartment the next day, not only because I couldn’t sleep in beds not my own. Alex, shockingly, had lied. In a different context, him being as adorable as he was when he was asleep would be… well, adorable. But waking up curled up next to him wasn’t something I exactly enjoyed.

It took me long enough to get used to sleeping next to Zack.

“Hello, cutie,” I greeted, bending down to scratch Dexter behind the ears. Abby and Josh walked in behind me, snickering, and once the puppy ran off to get love from them, I turned to Zack. “Hey, you.”

“Hey.” Arms around my waist, he gave me a long kiss. “Your bed’s not as nice without you in it.”

I laughed and went to put my bag away. “He didn’t misbehave, did he?”

“…No…” I gave him a skeptical look when I returned. “I don’t think your roommate likes me very much.”

Abby laughed. “What did you do?”

Zack winced, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. “Apparently Dexter went into Giselle’s room in the middle of the night and sniffed her feet…” Abby and Josh began laughing. “So I wake up because there’s a French girl screaming in the apartment and run out into the hall, and she freaks out because there’s a guy in the apartment in the middle of the night, as well as a demon puppy…”

Biting my lip to keep from laughing, I hugged him. “You poor thing.”

Dexter in her lap, Abby rubbed the sides of his face. “Aww, you’re not a demon puppy, are yooou?” she asked in a ridiculous voice. “Noooo, you’re not! No, you are not!”

“Stop that, Abigail. You’re scaring me.”

A few days later Abby called me from Josh’s hotel room, asking me to come get her so we could go get Tiffany. Happily her flight wasn’t coming in at an obscene hour of the morning, but in the early afternoon, so I didn’t grumble about leaving the house on my day off from school and work.

I parked on the street and went up to Josh’s room, skipping through the hallway from the elevator. “Alexander still coming with us?” I queried once Abby opened the door.

“Uh… I dunno,” she replied, walking out. I waved to Josh and followed her down the hall. “Let’s see!”

When she knocked on another door, Rian answered. “Is Alex awake?”

He shrugged. “He hasn’t come out yet,” he said, letting us in. “So probably not.” I scoffed; it was half-past noon.

“Eris, go wake him up.”

I blinked, turning away from Jack half-asleep in the front of the television. “Me? Why?” I asked. “You go wake him up!” Truth to tell, Alex was kind of miffed at me because I got mad at him and smacked him for cuddling. It wasn’t really his fault, but he wouldn’t let go!

Abby pouted. “You’re no fun.” She went through the closed door to the bedroom while I stood behind the couch and tickled Jack’s ears, pulling my hand away when he swatted at them. Rian watched, amused, until Jack started whining and Abby came back, looking confused. “He won’t get up.”

I frowned. “Is he dead?” Jack asked, itching his ear.

She laughed. “No, he just refuses to get up.” I rolled my eyes, crossing the room; I glanced in at him, curled up under the covers, and suggested she get a running start.

Which she did.

“Ugh!” he grunted when Abby landed on him. “Fuck you, Dutton.”

“Get uuuuup!” she ordered, sitting on and shaking him. “You said you wanted to come meet Tiffany.”

“Hot friend…” He paused, considering, before turning over. “Later…”

Smirking, I leapt onto the bed, sending Abby sprawling in a fit of giggles and Alex into another groan. “C’mon, Gaskarth,” I said brightly, pulling his hands away from his face. “It’s twelve fucking thirty and I won’t be late because you’re a lazy git.”

“Went to bed at three.”

“Don’t try to out-logic me, you’ll never win.” He squinted up at me and I pouted, deciding on a different approach. “I’ll buy you coffee,” I offered appeasingly. “Or Red Bull, whichever you prefer.”

Alex looked at me for another long moment before rolling his eyes. “I can’t get up when you’re sitting on me,” he pointed out. “Though that’s a good reason I should stay right where I am.”

I snorted and hopped off the bed. “You’re disgusting, Alexander. Put some clothes on.”

One pit-stop at Starbucks and a half-hour drive later, we were at the airport. Abby was sad because we didn’t make a sign, but I pointed out quietly that having a piece of paper that said “The Future Mrs. Rian Dawson” might give Alex ideas.

“Is that her?”

“No, Alex.”

“Is that her?”

“No, Alex.”

“Is—”

“Alex!” Abby exclaimed, turning on him. “Shut the fuck up! We’ll tell you when she’s here!”

I rolled my eyes in amusement at them and laughed aloud when I noticed something. “She’s here,” I announced, nodding at the stream of people walking towards the baggage carousel next to which we were standing.

They both spun around, standing on their tiptoes to look for her. Kind of ridiculous on Alex’s part since he didn’t know what Tiffany looked like and on Abby’s part since she wouldn’t be able to see her anyway.

I took a step back and quickly pulled Alex back in time for Abby to get tackle-hugged by our small Canadian friend. “Lover!” Tiffany cried happily.

Alex tilted his head at them. “She doesn’t look like a stripper…” he mused.

“That’s what you think!” she retorted, jumping up. Then she turned to be and I planted my feet, grinning. “Wifey!” Then she tried to tackle me, but really only succeeded in putting herself in a mid-air hug. I laughed and spun around, making her swear in surprise.

“I’m confused, but still kinda turned on,” Alex announced.

Abby smacked his arm and I let Tiffany return to the ground. “Gay marriage is legal in some provinces of Canada,” I explained with a shrug.

“I’mma steal her to my homeland and marry her!” she continued, grinning. “So!” She rubbed her hands together. “When do I get to sex Rian?”

Abby and I cracked up laughing as I grabbed her suitcase off the carousel. “Soon enough!” Abby said, patting her shoulder.

We headed back to my car, Tiffany telling us about the smelly old guy who kept hitting on her during her flight. Abby ordered Alex to get shotgun. “Why?” he asked, pouting.

“Because you’d molest our darling Torontonian,” I answered as I swung into the driver’s seat.

“And that’s my job!” Abby added, hugging her.

“You never let me have any fun.”

“Whiner,” Tiffany accused. A few minutes later, she interrupted herself mid-sentence. “PULL OVER, WOMAN! I REQUIRE COFFEE!” I rolled my eyes, but pulled off the freeway and found a coffee shop nonetheless. She poked her head up between the seats, grinning happily. “Be right back, being sexy.”

Tiffany and Abby vacated the car, chattering away, leaving Alex and me sitting in silence. “I like her,” he decided, smirking.

“You like the fact that she has a nice rack,” I corrected dryly.

“…Well, yeah.”