Love Is a Bunch of Stupid Decisions

Chapter 2

I walked through our door, tossing my handbag and keys on the kitchen table. Rubbing my eyes in an attempt to rid them of exhaustion, I started making my way to Ben and my's room. My feet ached more with every step that I took, which I thought I would have been used to by now after waitressing for several weeks. Still, somehow each step felt like a struggle.

"Hey, Char," I hear Ben shout from our living room.

"Hey, Cook," I respond, already changing into comfier clothes. Since the beginning of our relationship, we had called each other Char and Cook. I guess some nicknames really just stick.

"How was work today?"

I groan, slipping one of his sweatshirts over my head. "Work was work. We were understaffed the whole time, so it was pure chaos, but I made good tips, so I guess it was good." There I find not just Ben, but also Sky Flaherty, Josh Burrage, and Iain Young- some of his best friends since Newsies, who could practically pass as our roommates with how much time they've started spending at our apartment.

"What are you guys watching? I didn't even notice you guys were here, it's not like you guys to be this quiet for more than ten seconds." I laugh, sitting on the couch next to Ben.

"We're watching Newsies Live," Sky says, his eyes fixated on the screen.

"... Newsies Live? Like... you guys?"

"Yeah, why?" Sky continues, confused by my response.

"Well, I mean... it's not like you don't know how it ends, why are you watching it so intently?" I ask. Ben sighs dramatically, making me laugh even more.

"Ben and Sky made a bet about how many times Ben takes his cigar out of his mouth and puts it back in. So now, we're counting." Iain explains.

"I'm counting. And you're distracting me," Sky groans, grabbing the remote and rewinding several seconds. Iain rolls his eyes while I just shake my head and laugh.

"You guys are just too much." I lean my head on Ben's shoulder, closing my eyes.

"Long day, huh?" He asks after leaving a kiss on the top of my head. I just nod, letting the warmth of his body and his finger tracing patterns on my shoulder nearly put me to sleep. All of us are mostly quiet for a while, aside from Sky, who mumbles a number to himself every couple seconds.

"Man. I miss tour life," Josh says, the first words he's spoken since I've gotten here (definitely uncharacteristic for that boy).

Ben and Sky mumble about how they agree. I couldn't believe that it had been almost four years since Newsies had started their broadway tour. I had begged my mother to buy me tickets when they came to Michigan, and she eventually caved. My parents didn't want to go, of course, but Angie went with me, and we had the time of our lives. She was going through a huge Josh Burrage phase at the time, while I was just pumped to see my first broadway show. And now, I was in my living room with these same boys that I saw on that stage, curled up next to the one that I got to call my boyfriend. Crazy how life works, isn't it?

"Would you guys ever go on another tour if you got the chance?" I ask.

They all thought about it for a minute. "I definitely would," Iain says, the rest of the guys agreeing.

"You never know, there might be an opportunity sooner than you think..." Josh says, wearing a smile that had mischief written all over it. 

We all look at him, the anxiety building in the room as we wait for him to spill whatever it was he was holding in. "... Alright, spill it, Josh." Iain says.