Oh, Brother

We went to the hotel that night straight from the airport because Jeremy wanted to make sure I got enough rest. He didn’t realize that I slept my way through my flight, which meant that the last thing I needed was more down time.

I texted back and forth with Reece and kept to myself. They’d gotten a suite, and I would have the living room area to myself. Tyler sat on the opposite end of the couch from me and, though I glanced at him and caught him staring at me several times, we didn’t really talk.

At least, not until he was flipping channels and came across The Office. “Back it up,” I said excitedly. Finally, something I was familiar with. It didn’t matter that I was in a new country with perfect strangers, as long as I had something to hang on to. Even something as simple as a television show would work. “I want to watch The Office.”

Tyler cast me a sideways glance, with what I was beginning to think of as his signature amused half-smile on his face. “That show? It doesn’t even make sense.”

“Sure it does. See that guy? Wait… I don’t know him.” Tyler laughed at me and I squinted at the T.V. “Oh! These are the British characters. Now I absolutely have to watch it.”

“You learn that this isn’t what you were thinking, that it’s something you’re unfamiliar with, and suddenly you’re more determined to see it? What kind of thinking is that?”

“I need to compare for Ree- Seraphina, my best friend. She’s obsessed with this show. Thanks to her, I’ve memorized nearly every episode.”

“Is that why you watch it, because she makes you?” he asked.

“No. I like random, which is the very essence of The Office.” Tyler gave me a look that clearly and exaggeratedly said ‘you’re crazy’, but he put down the remote and left my show on. I felt better, now that we’d had a conversation that wasn’t the typical ‘hi, how are you?’ or ‘lovely weather we’re having’. It was easier, being here, now that I was starting to see him more as a person than as ‘Reece’s brother’.

The next morning, though, the adventures started. That day, we saw the changing of the guard- which would have been a lot more fun if Reece was there, because together, we would have had a great time trying to rile those guards. As it was, I just did my best to blend into the crowd.

Then we had lunch at an overpriced place that served undersized portions. Why anyone went to places like that I’d never know. My theory was that they went there to show how fancy they were. Call me uncouth, but I thought it was ridiculous.

As I pushed my food around my plate- it was disgusting- I caught Tyler’s eye and suddenly we were both laughing hysterically. I felt eyes on us, but that somehow made me laugh harder. Once the laughter died, though, things got terribly awkward.

“Is there anything you really want to see here, Reece?” Jeremy asked. “This is, after all, to celebrate your graduation.” That startled me. Reece never told me that this was the reason for the trip.

“Well… I have always wanted to check out the London Eye,” I said cautiously.

Charlene squealed; she seemed to do that a lot. “Oh, Jeremy! I’m afraid of heights! I can’t go on a giant ferris wheel!”

“I’ll take her,” Tyler offered. “We can meet you back at the hotel.” So we left and started walking down the street.

Tyler made to flag down a cab, but I stopped him. “I want to enjoy London, not see it from a cab.”

He didn’t seem to mind, so we walked. We went most of the way in silence before Tyler said, “This has to be pretty strange for you.” I nodded. He didn’t know the half of it.

“I didn’t know what to expect, coming here. And I certainly didn’t expect Charlene,” I told him honestly.

“So I guess you didn’t hear how they met.” I shook my head. “They were in an elevator together. It stopped completely and she was freaking out- there’s not much Charlene’s not afraid of- and she turned to him for comfort. She nearly smothered him, from what I heard, and when the elevator started up again, she was so shocked that she flung his arm across his face. Gave him a nosebleed.”

I laughed and he said, “But that’s not all! She’s afraid of blood. Terrified, really. So that started a whole new round of hysterics.”

“That’s ridiculous.” But I believed it. Charlene did seem the type.

“So… tell me about yourself.” I didn’t answer right away. Who was I supposed to tell him about? Me or the real Reece?

I knew enough about her that I could do it. I could tell him all about everything that ever happened to her. Everything important, anyway. But it would be harder to keep up this charade, and it’s not like Tyler would know the difference.

So I told him about myself. We spent the rest of the walk swapping stories. I volunteered more than I’d been planning. I found myself wanting him to know me.

The wheel itself was fantastic. We soared through the sky and saw a breathtaking view of London that made the wait to get on well worth it. It was the loveliest thing I’d ever seen.

Tyler’s face was glowing and he grinned at me. I wondered which it was, the view or his smile, that took my breath away.