More Than Friends

Chapter Six

When Tuesday afternoon rolled around, Ryan felt more anxious than he should have. He actually changed into a nicer pair of jeans than he would normally wear just because he was suddenly self-conscious about whether Zach would be judging his clothes.

He knew it was an ignorant stereotype that all gay guys were fashion divas but he still wanted to prove that he was cool with their friendship.

Ryan arrived at seven fifteen with a six-pack and his school work. He had printed out most of the notes he'd taken during the macroeconomics class that he was at risk of failing. He understood the basics of the business cycle but once he tried to wrap his brain around long-run economic growth of a nation... he lost it.

He was seriously considering dropping the class and figured this test would determine whether he stuck it out and hoped for a C or dropped it and tried again next semester.

Zach was in the kitchen and yelled for him to come in after Ryan rang the doorbell. Ryan ducked his head in and was overcome by the aromas wafting from the kitchen. He put the six-pack on the breakfast bar and popped the top of a beer bottle, tipping it toward Zach from the opposite side of the counter.

"You like Palate Wrecker?" Ryan asked.

"Palate what?"

"Palate Wrecker? It's an IPA. It's good."

"Seriously?" Zach laughed. "I'm slaving over a hot stove and you show up with something called Palate Wrecker? Should I just stop now?" Zach lifted his hands from the knife he was chopping almonds with and stared at Ryan.

Ryan's face went pale. Fuck. He was trying to be cool about the night and apparently offended his host by bringing a beer that would ruin the meal.

"Oh, shit. I'm sorry. I didn't even think about that. I didn't mean to..."

Zach laughed again. "Just messing with you, dude." He reached over and grabbed the open bottle from Ryan's hand. "I've had this before. My ex used to drink it. It'll actually go well with what I'm making."

Ryan exhaled loudly, relieved that he hadn't already ruined the night. "What are we having? It smells really good."

The rich aromas were making Ryan's stomach growl but he didn't want to be rude.

"I hope you like Indian food because this is one of my favorite dishes. It's Chicken Korma and rice. Not too spicy but does have a bit of a kick. But, you seem like you can handle a little heat, right?" Zach peeked up at Ryan with a smirk. Was he flirting?

Ryan grabbed a beer for himself and took a long drag. "Yeah, that sounds great. I like spicy food. My ex was always dieting so we never ate good food. And I'm starving so I'm pretty sure anything will be good."

He felt a flutter in his belly. He assumed it was discomfort from possibly being flirted with by a guy and not because he was actually flattered by it.

"Let me just get cleaned up in here and then we can start with your work. This only needs another thirty minutes or so and then we can eat. You can spread out your stuff on the coffee table and I'll be right over."

Ryan took his bag to the sofa and began to unload. He set up his laptop and spread out the notes and sample tests he'd been working on. Since the tests were mostly essay, he wasn't sure if he was describing all of theories and policies correctly.

When Zach joined him a few minutes later, they dove into Ryan's examples. Zach was actually a really great tutor. He was patient and didn't make Ryan feel stupid for not understanding the concepts. He knew exactly what Hinkle was looking for and within fifteen minutes of talking, Ryan felt like he was actually starting to understand it. It was almost interesting when Zach described it.