Until I found you

Big Secrets

  Max was laying down on the concrete inside the skating bowl. Bradley almost didn't even know he was there, if it wasn't for the tiktok audios that could be heard from Max's phone.

Max chewed some gum as he scrolled through his phone, laying down on his back in the sloped pit.

Bradley approached the bowl and could hear the faint sound of an audio coming from Max's phone. He smiled a bit at how peaceful Max looked as he lay there on the concrete. It was a sight he never thought he'd actually find cute, but here he was, thinking just about how cute Max looked lying there like that.

Bradley slowly walked towards Max and stood there a moment, just watching him and waiting, until he finally spoke up.

"Hey...Max..."

Max glanced up and looked at Bradley with a smile.

"Hey B! What's up?" He says softly and innocently.

Bradley smiled as Max looked up at him and greeted him like normal, almost as if Bradley hadn't been avoiding him and pushing him away for the past week. Max's tone was still as sweet and casual as always, which made Bradley's heart pang with guilt.

"N-nothing, I just...I wanted to...apologize, for being a jerk all week. I've been acting like an idiot...."

Max sat up, a little shocked. "You? Apologizing? Man! I didnt think it was possible!" He giggles and teases Bradley as he welcomes him to hop down into the bowl to sit with him.

Bradley rolled his eyes at Max's teasing tone, but a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips. Being teased by Max like this almost felt like a normal occurrence by now, in a comfortable, familiar way.

He chuckled a bit, feeling more at ease now, then he gingerly sat down next to Max, leaning back against the wall of the bowl.

"Shut up. I'm perfectly capable of apologizing if I've been acting like an ass for no reason..."

Max giggles and sighed. "Oh! The great Bradley Uppercrust and his peasant.." Max teased. He smiled a little and looked over at Bradley.

"Thanks..that means a lot.." He said. They sat next to one another, hip to hip, as they relaxed and looked up at the stars.

"Anyways..is that all you came here for?" Max said softly.

As Bradley sat down next to Max, he could feel his heart thump at the proximity between them and how close he was sitting right next to him. He chuckled and shook his head at Max's teasing.

"First of all, don't call yourself a peasant. Your ego is big enough already..."

Bradley let out a deep sigh and slowly nodded."And...no, there was something else."

Max looked up at the stars and nodded.

"Yeah? What is it?" He asked softly and leaned his head slightly on Bradley's shoulder.

Bradley felt his heart thump as Max leaned his head against his shoulder. This kind of physical affection felt so normal between them now and Bradley found himself liking it a lot...too much, even.

He hesitantly took a breath and looked down, avoiding looking at Max as he spoke.

"I've been...wanting to ask you something..."

Bradley swallowed nervously and continued to not look at Max directly, not wanting to risk looking him in the eye. He shifted a bit, his heart thumping rapidly in his chest as he finally forced himself to ask the question.

"...It's about that secret you've been hiding...Tommy told me about it...and...well...I was wondering if you could tell me what it is? And why you've been keeping it a secret..."

Max paused and look completely embarrassed. He looked away and looked a little panicked.

"Uh..I..um.." He mumbled.

Bradley could instantly tell that he struck a nerve by asking Max about his secret. He could hear how Max mumbled awkwardly and avoided eye contact. Bradley turned to look at him and silently cursed at himself for making Max uncomfortable.

He sighed, now feeling a bit guilty.

"I-I'm sorry...I shouldn't have asked you about it...you don't have to tell me if you don't want to..."

Max sat up instantly and shook his head.

"N-..no it's not that..I'm fine..it's just.." He looked away. "A little embarrassing..promise I can trust you?" Max says softly.

Bradley was surprised when Max practically bolted upright and shook his head, insisting that it was fine.

He then said that it was just a tad embarrassing and asked if he promised to keep his secret...and at that moment, Bradley realized that he was on the verge of uncovering the secret Max had been keeping.

"Y-yeah...yeah, you can trust me. I promise I won't tell anyone...I swear..."

Max sighed and nodded. "I..like girls..and boys." He mumbled and looked away.

Bradley stared at Max as he heard him say that he was bi, and felt his heart skip at those words. Max, the guy he was secretly in love with, was actually bi? That definitely got his attention.

"You.....you're bi?" Bradley said quietly, surprise in his voice, but also with a hint of nervousness.

Max smiles a little and shrugs. "Yeah..I don't know..I use to always just like girls but ever since college things have changed..I talked to Tommy about it and he suggested the idea and..well it kinda clicked."

He sighed and laid back down. "Just..don't make fun of me too hard.." He said softly and giggled.

Bradley felt himself blushing slightly as Max spoke, explaining how he'd never really liked guys before until now. It gave Bradley hope for some reason, but he couldn't figure out why.

Maybe it was because all those times Max was being nice and friendly towards him, it could actually mean something.

Then Max told him to not make fun of him too hard, and Bradley's heart practically sank with guilt. Of course Max would think he'd make fun of him for something like this. He quickly shook his head.

"N-no I'm not going to make fun of you.."