Dynamics (Twoset Violin Fanfic)

Chapter Twenty-One

Brett blinked. "I... I can't impose like that..."

"You wouldn't be imposing," Eddy said. "You're going through some heavy stuff, Brett. It would bother me more if you had to deal with it alone."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. C'mon, it's a short walk from here."

"Wait— um, before we go, I wanted to ask you something."

"Yeah?" Eddy said, suddenly aware of how close they were sitting and the seclusion of the trees.

"Why were you at a park at 10pm?"

"Oh," Eddy said. "Right. Well, I was fighting with my sister and then I kind of stormed off."

"What were you fighting about?"

"It's nothing," Eddy said. "Especially in comparison to what you're dealing with."

"It bothered you enough to leave your house, though," Brett said.

Eddy was silent.

"Hey, you wanted to be there for me, right?" Brett said.

"Yeah, of course," Eddy said.

"So let me be there for you. If it's really personal, I understand, but I want to help you out. And talking about it might help."

"Ok, fine," Eddy said.

"I got home a little bit later than usual because I was having bubble tea with you, and Belle got really mad at me. She said some stuff about me being distant and ignoring her, and I said that I don't need her permission for every little thing, she said she needed some space, and, well, here we are."

"Wow," Brett said. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry I didn't check if you had other plans."

"It's not your fault," Eddy said. "My sister has always been kind of overprotective of me. Even though she's only a few years older than me, she acts a lot like a mom. Probably because our actual mom passed away when we were kids."

"I'm so sorry to hear that," Brett said.

"Yeah, it was really difficult for us. But I think... I think I could've been nicer to her. She's trying her best."

"Maybe you should tell her that," Brett said.

"Well, she'll probably be too tired to talk today," Eddy said. "But tomorrow, I'm going to apologize and try to figure everything out with her."

"What about you?" Eddy said. "How are you going to talk to your brother?"

"I don't know," Brett said. "I guess I'll text him and then try to call again on Monday like we always do. I'm still really worried, though."

"I'm sorry you're going through this stuff," Eddy said. "If it's any consolation, I think he'll call you back. You've kept in touch for all these years, right?"

"Yeah," Brett said, a small smile appearing on his lips. "You ready to go?"

They stood up and Brett suddenly grabbed his hand.

"Thank you," Brett blurted out. "For talking to me. And letting me stay at your house. I'm sorry I had to leave in the middle of our date."

"Oh, so it was a date."

"You thought I took you to a gay bubble tea cafe as friends?"

"I don't know! You're very nice! And I don't have a lot of luck with—"

"Eddy."

"Hm?"

"Can I kiss you?"

Eddy smiled. "Yeah, of course."

They kissed softly, and Brett felt the stress of the day melt away.

As they walked, Eddy's hand brushed his. The second time it happened, Brett laced their fingers together and didn't let go.