Temptation and Reason

Chapter 7

(Time skip to a couple weeks later) 

"Ryan, what do I do?" Pete had rushed into the house on the verge of a panic attack. "I don't know what I'm doing anymore." Ryan was laying across the couch, staring up at a pacing Pete. 

"First of all, sit down." He motioned to the chair next to him. Pete sat at the edge and took a deep breath. "Alright, now what happened?"

Pete knew that Brendon and Ryan would leave to give Pete privacy sometimes. He just wished they were there last night so he didn't have to repeat himself now.

"We just spent the day together at his house, you know how we've been doing." Ryan nodded. "And then it got late, so he asked me to stay over and..." Pete was bouncing his leg vigorously and ran a hand through his hair. 

"You didn't sleep with him did you?" Ryan asked accusingly as he sat up. 

"No!" Pete said shaking his head. Ryan told Pete not to rush whatever he had with Patrick. For once, Pete actually agreed to Ryan's no-sex rule not caring how it upset Brendon. 

"Well, what happened?" 

"We just laid in his bed, cuddled and talked. And you know I don't cuddle." Ryan looked at him with a straight face, waiting for him to continue. "I don't know what happened. It was just the feeling of being with him and I didn't stop myself before I asked him..," Pete's voice got quiet, "to be my boyfriend."

"And he said no?" Ryan gave every ounce of his attention to Pete. He shook his head in response. "He said yes?" Ryan's eyebrows furrowed when Pete nodded. "What's the problem then? I thought you liked him." Pete ran his hand through his hair again.

"I don't do this Ry. I've never felt his way and I don't know what to do." Pete dropped his face into his hands.

"Pete, nothing's changed." Pete lifted his head slowly. "The only difference now is that you guys have a label, but you're still the same Pete and he's the same Patrick. You're just Pete and Patrick." Pete nodded as he felt himself calming down. 

Patrick came into Pete's mind. He loved waking up to have Patrick cuddled against him this morning. It was warm and comforting. The boy's hair was tousled from sleep. His snores were cute and soft. Pete wouldn't mind having more mornings like that and that's what scared him. That thought led him to sneak out of the boy's bed and out of the house without a single word. 

Ryan's words ran through his head along with Patrick. A smile spread across his face as the realization hit him. Once again, Ryan's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He leaned back and eyed Pete curiously. 

"What?" 

"So I have boyfriend?," Pete whispered through his smile. He felt butterflies fluttering in his stomach. Ryan smiled back and shook his head in disbelief. He didn't think he'd ever see a man have this effect over Pete. 

"Is this what it was like with Brendon?" Ryan shut his eyes with a smile and nodded.

"Kinda, yeah." He sighed deeply. "I didn't understand it at first. Our kind isn't meant to have these kinds of feelings really. All we're told to do is guide souls our direction." 

"How did you know what to do then?" Ryan shrugged in response. 

"We just did what felt...right..." Ryan's lips turned down in a frown. "Even though being together's wrong." 

"You guys were made for each other though." Ryan chuckled softly. "You guys were inseparable when I first met you." Ryan smiled at the memory. "Why did that change?" Ryan looked up and examined the ceiling.