constellations ☆ colby brock

chapter thirty seven: japan- part three.

*stephanie's pov*

"hey steph?" brennen whispered from across the room on his bed. we were the only ones awake.

"what's up?"

"i- um, i have something i need to tell you. can we go on a breakfast run or something? i don't want to tell these guys yet,"

i nodded and smiled. he looked very serious, i wonder what he had to tell me?
i brushed it off and i got up slowly, trying not to wake colby and the other guys up. i threw on the nearest sweatshirt i could find, slipped on my vans, and made my way to the door where brennen was waiting.

i grabbed the spare room key and shoved it in my pocket, opening the door and entering the hallway with brennen. i texted into the group chat for the trip that we had gone to get some breakfast for everyone and that we'd come back soon.

"okay, so, what do you need to tell me?" i asked, putting my phone away and directing my attention to brennen.

he scratched his elbow and bit his lip, his face flushed red. why was he so anxious?

"hey, hey, it's okay," i stepped in front of him and held his body in place by his shoulders.

"i'm-i'm sorry, i'm just really n-nervous." he looked down at his feet.

"here, come sit down." i grabbed his hand and sat down against the wall, pulling him down next to me.

"okay, breathe in, and breathe out," i forced him into a breathing exercise i use to calm my anxiety, and within a minute he was okay again. "alright, now tell me what's going on."

"be-before i tell you, just promise me you won't judge me, okay?" he looked at me, his voice cracking and his eyes brimming with tears.

"i would never judge you, brennen." i grabbed his hand and squeezed it. i rubbed circles into his palm, trying to mimic what colby does for me when i get nervous.

"i, uh, i've been struggling with this for a really long time," he wiped away a tear, "and i... i... i'm..." he trailed off, his tears overflowing and spilling out. his body started to tremble, and i pulled him into a hug.

"shhhh, calm down, try to breathe, it's okay. i'm here for you." i rubbed his back.

"steph, i'm... i-i'm gay." his voice shook harder with every word he said.

okay, so, weird.
wasn't i just thinking about him being gay last night?
yeah, i was.
well, this explains the great sense of style and the 'too handsome' thing he's got going on.

"brennen," i pulled away from the hug and i held him upright, wiping his cheeks with the sleeve of my sweatshirt, "i don't care if you're gay. who you love doesn't change who you are. i love you because you're a sweet, kind-hearted person, and if kissing guys is what makes you happy, than i'm more than okay with that."

"t-t-thank you," he sniffled a bit, rubbing his eyes.

"hey, this is actually great. i've always wanted a gay best friend." i chuckled slightly, earning a small laugh from my puffy-faced friend.

"thank you for being okay with this. i didn't know who to tell, but it was eating me up
inside." he said as he stood up. he held a hand out for me, and i obliged, letting him pull me up off of the floor.

"you'll always be brennen to me, no matter what you like or what you do. now, come on, let's go get the boys breakfast before they yell at us for taking so long." i grabbed his hand again, heading towards the elevator.

•••

*colby's pov*

my phone emitted that loud ringing noise that i hated to wake up to. i reached over to my side to wake stephanie up, but my hand hit the bed. i opened my eyes, and she wasn't there.
my heart dropped to the floor.
i rushed to pick up my phone, but i immediately let out the breath i didn't know i was holding in when i saw the text from her on my screen.