William has always kept his distance from his sister Layla's boyfriends-until Colton arrives.
With his charm and easygoing nature, Colton quickly becomes a welcome presence in William's life.
As the two bond over shared interests and late-night co...
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Three months had passed since Layla brought up the idea of hanging out with Colton more, and honestly? I didn’t mind. I hadn’t realized it at first, but somehow, Colton and I had grown closer. It wasn’t like we suddenly became best friends or anything, but we started talking more, hanging out more. And not just because of Layla.
It was little things at first. Texts about random stuff, Colton showing up at the house when Layla wasn’t around, or offering me a ride to places. At first, I figured he was just being nice. I mean, why else would he want to hang out with his girlfriend’s younger brother? But over time, it didn’t feel so weird anymore. I actually enjoyed it.
We’d joke around, play video games whenever he visited, or grab food together if he was in town. Sometimes it felt almost natural, like this weird shift had happened without either of us acknowledging it. I tried not to think about it too much, though, because every time I did, that familiar pit of confusion would form in my stomach.
“I’m not gay.” I still told myself that. Every. Single. Time. It was like a mantra that I had to keep repeating to stop myself from spiraling. Because every now and then, I’d catch myself watching Colton a little too closely or overanalyzing the way he smiled when we were talking. But I was probably just imagining it.
Probably.
***
Now, with school on break for the holidays, we were getting ready for this massive camping trip my parents had planned. They’d been talking about it for months, and now the time had come. A full week out in the woods, disconnected from everything. To be honest, I wasn’t really into the whole outdoors thing, but there wasn’t much of a choice. Layla, of course, was excited about it. She’d always been the adventurous one in the family, always looking forward to trips like this.
Colton? Well, I didn’t know how he felt about it, but he was coming along, too. Layla had invited him early on, and he had agreed without hesitation. I wondered if he even liked camping or if he was just doing it for her.
I stood outside the house, watching as my dad packed up the car. The trunk was already overflowing with gear—tents, sleeping bags, coolers, and enough food to last a week in the wilderness. Mom was doing one final check of our supplies, and Layla was running around excitedly, making sure she hadn’t forgotten anything.
“Will, can you help me with this?” Layla called from the garage, struggling with some oversized duffel bag.
“Yeah, hold on,” I said, walking over and grabbing one of the handles.
“Thanks,” she said, smiling. “I can’t believe we’re actually going. It’s going to be so much fun!”
I forced a smile, not really sharing her enthusiasm. “Yeah, fun…”
She laughed, shaking her head. “You’ll be fine. Besides, Colton’s coming, so you’ll have someone to hang out with.”
The mention of his name made my stomach do that weird flip thing again. I’d gotten better at keeping it in check, though. I didn’t let it show on my face this time.
