Roger was lying on his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, when he heard a knock on the door. "Come in!" he shouted and scrambled off the bed. The door swung open and Roger's breath caught in his throat when he saw Brian standing in the doorway.
Brian looked hesitant, shifting from one foot to another. Roger's heart was pounding as he watched Brian take a tentative step towards him.
"I'm sorry," Brian whispered, his voice barely audible to Roger.
Roger was taken aback. He'd expected Brian to yell at him and announce that he didn't want to be his friend anymore or something similar. What he had definitely not been expecting was an apology.
Roger felt a wave of happiness pass through him. Never in his life had he been so relieved. Brian didn't hate him. Brian didn't want him out of his life.
"I get it if you're still angry with me," Brian rushed to say, clearly taking Roger's silence as a sign that he hadn't forgiven him yet.
Roger shook his head. "No, it wasn't your fault," he said. He had been angry with Brian before, but now that he was apologizing, how could he not forgive him?
Brian gave him a timid smile with a similar touch of relief that Roger felt. He wrapped his arms around Roger's shoulders and pulled him close. "I missed you," he whispered in Roger's ear, making his skin tingle.
"I missed you too," Roger mumbled into Brian's chest. He was glad Brian couldn't see his face; his cheeks were heating up and he didn't want the other man to see him blushing.
It seemed to Roger that the world melted away as they stood there. Brian's embrace was warm and being so close to him was intoxicating.
Just for a moment Roger let himself believe that Brian was his; that the love he felt for him wasn't one-sided. He wanted to hold on to him forever, but way too soon Brian's arms were gone from around him. However, the warm feeling of pure happiness in his stomach remained.
