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When Ryan walks into the East High gym for his 15 year high school reunion, he doesn’t know what to expect.
He’s only here because Kelsi begged him to come, he’d originally wanted to stay away like he did for the 10-year one. What’s the point of coming here to talk to people he hasn’t seen in years? He’s pretty sure everyone’s just here to brag about how far they’ve come. Careers, marriages, children.
But Kelsi is still his best friend, and she knows exactly how to make him do what she wants him to, including, apparently, coming to this stupid reunion.
It’s not like he doesn’t have anything to brag about – at 33, he’s got quite a list of off-Broadway and even some Broadway plays and musicals he’s been in, and since he’s moved completely behind the scenes, he’s made a name for himself as a fresh and creative choreographer. It’s his dream come true, but he doesn’t think that this is gonna be a crowd that gets it.
Kelsi does, obviously, since she has also stuck with her high school dream and composes songs for a living. Sharpay would, even though she’s more of an influencer these days than a performer, but she’s not coming tonight, opting to stay in LA instead. Anyone else – well, he hasn’t really kept up with what everyone has been doing since college, but he doesn’t think their world is the same as his.
He deleted Facebook years ago, and his other social media profiles mostly aren’t old enough to feature any high school classmates. Sometimes someone’s Instagram gets recommended to him, but he only looks if it’s a public profile, and doesn’t follow anyone from high school but his sister, Kelsi and Martha.
Martha, who’s by the table at the entrance, together with a woman Ryan doesn’t recognize, holding a checklist, a pen tucked behind her ear.
“Ryan Evans,” she crows, a wide smile on her face. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw your name on the list.”
“Here I am,” Ryan says and accepts her hug. “It’s mostly Kelsi’s fault.”
She laughs. “I figured, yeah. She hasn’t checked in yet, but you can have your name tag already.”
He takes the name tag from her and sticks it to his shirt on his chest. “So does that mean I’m checked in now?”
“It does,” she grins, making a checkmark on her clipboard. “Go on inside, there’s a lot of people already. We should catch up later, when I’m off reception duty.”
“Yeah, definitely.” He gives her another quick hug. “See you later, Martha.”
The inside of the gym is decorated in red and white, unsurprisingly, and just like Martha said, it’s already pretty crowded. He stops a few steps into the room and looks around for someone familiar, feeling vaguely uncomfortable. He should’ve coordinated his arrival with Kelsi, now he’s stuck either with uncomfortable small talk or awkwardly hovering by the door on his own.
Ryan is saved from having to make the choice himself when someone waves at him from the right hand corner of the gym – Gabriella Montez, still tiny and pretty and with the same smile when she excitedly waves him over.
Ryan smiles back and follows her invitation. He hasn’t talked to her in probably ten years, but they got along well especially after that summer they all spent at Lava Springs, so he’s happy to catch up.
Gabriella is standing with a group of people that he’s mostly familiar with: Troy Bolton (he wonders if they’re still together or amicable exes, but supposes he’s about to find out), Taylor McKessie, and a few guys that were on the basketball team, Jason and Zeke, he’s pretty sure. They’ve grown up, but don’t look so different he can’t place them. There’s two women he’s sure he’s never seen before – maybe they’re plus ones?
The last person with them makes Ryan falter for a second, hopefully unnoticeably so. Chad Danforth is 10 years older than the last time Ryan saw so much as a picture of him, and it looks good on him. Really good.
His hair is shorter than Ryan has ever seen it, he’s buff as hell, and he’s sporting stubble on his face that’s, well. Really fucking sexy.
Throughout high school, Ryan had a number of crushes, but Chad was undoubtedly the most intense one, and the one that lasted the longest. And it seems like some things don’t change all that much, even after 15 years.
He tears his eyes away from him with some difficulty and focuses on Gabriella instead, greeting her with a hug.
“It’s so good to see you!” she exclaims, squeezing him once before letting him go. “It’s been ages!”
“Yeah, kind of,” he says apologetically, then turns to smile at the group gathered around them. “Hey, everyone.”
The guys all clap his shoulder and Taylor gives him a quick hug too, but then he’s standing in front of Chad.
“Hey, Ryan, it’s good to see you,” he says, and Ryan is still trying to process the way his name sounds falling from Chad’s lips (he used to call him “Evans” most of the time, which always made Ryan feel some kind of way, too) when he gets pulled into a hug. He wasn’t expecting it at all but recovers quickly enough to hug Chad back.
This is cool. Totally cool. Are Chad and Taylor still together?
“Good to see you too, Chad,” he gets out, and takes a step back because Chad smells good, and he’d really rather not embarrass himself tonight by drooling too obviously over his high school crush. “How’s everyone been?”
He gets a quick rundown over the next 10 minutes: Troy and Gabriella are back in Albuquerque, have been married for nearly ten years and have two kids (“We decided to move back here when I found out I was pregnant,” Gabriella said, and Ryan practically yelped, “You have a baby?”
“Two, actually, and neither of them are babies anymore,” Gabriella laughed. “Sophia, the older one, is already in school.”), Zeke and Jason both still live in Albuquerque too (the women Ryan didn’t recognize are, in fact, Zeke’s girlfriend and Jason’s wife), but Taylor lives in Boston and works for MIT.
And then Chad says, “I’m in New York.”
“Wait, seriously?” Ryan asks, and tries not to notice that means at least Chad and Taylor don’t live together. “Me too!”
“No shit?” Chad laughs. “I had no idea. What are you doing there?”
“I’m a choreographer,” Ryan says, and Gabriella grips his arm, reminding her of his existence.
“Oh, I always knew you would make it,” she says and sounds so genuine it warms Ryan’s heart. “That’s amazing, Ryan, I’m so happy for you! Do you love it?”
“I really do,” he replies. “I was a dancer, too, for a while, but this is what I’ve always wanted to do.”
Everyone else seems to have fairly normal jobs – well, Taylor researches at MIT and Gabriella does something science-y in pharma, but the rest are in marketing, sales, administrative work, that sort of thing.
Then Zeke asks about Sharpay and Ryan gives them a quick rundown on her LA influencer life and decides not to bring up Zeke’s huge crush on her in school, considering his girlfriend is here.
Once that’s done, there’s a short lull in the conversation, but they’re saved from any awkwardness when Gabriella suddenly squeals, “Kelsi!”
Ryan turns to see his best friend approaching them, an excited grin on her face. She spends a couple of minutes giving everyone hugs and then stands on her tiptoes to kiss Ryan’s cheek.
“How long have you been here? Have you guys already done all the catching up?”
“Yes and I love you, but I think instead of listening to it all again, I’m gonna find Martha,” Ryan tells her.
She seems completely fine, so he doesn’t feel bad about leaving her alone with a group of people that includes the woman she was in tragic, unrequited gay love with for two years. And she did just laugh when he asked her last week if she still had any feelings for Gabriella.
Kelsi squeezes his waist. “Oh yeah, I talked to her before I found you guys and she said she wanted to catch up with you, good idea.”
“I’ll see you guys later,” Ryan says, smiling at the group gathered around them, then spins around to look for Martha.
He finds her soon after and spends a good half hour talking to her over his first and second drink of the night. They haven’t really kept in touch beyond following each other on Instagram, but he’s remembering why he always liked her so much.
He’s at the finger food buffet trying to decide what to get when Chad steps up to him.
“You missed Jason asking Kelsi if you guys were dating,” he says conversationally, as if they’ve been talking this whole time.
Ryan laughs, startled. “What? I always thought everyone knew I was as gay as the day is long.”
Chad laughs too. (It’s a nice laugh.) “Apparently not everyone.” He grabs a jalapeño popper and tilts his head to look at Ryan. “So, New York?”
“You knew I went to Juilliard there, right? I just never left,” Ryan says. “But how’d you end up there? I can’t believe we’ve been in the same city this whole time. Or— since when have you been there?”
“Ten years or so?” Chad shrugs. “It feels really stupid now but I never even thought to try and find you.”
“Well, why would you?” Ryan reaches for a hushpuppy and shrugs one shoulder. “We haven’t really talked since school. Not that— I just mean—” He sighs. “I just mean I don’t blame you for not reaching out. What led you to New York?”
Chad graciously accepts the topic change, and they take a few steps away from the buffet without having to talk about it.
“Maybe you heard that I was drafted into the NBA from college?” Chad starts, and Ryan nods.
“Yeah, that was still in Facebook times,” he says with a wry smile. “Or maybe even MySpace? Anyway, back when I kept up with everyone on at least one of those websites.”
Chad grins. “Oh yeah, I remember that time. Anyway, that happened and eventually I got to join the Nets – the Brooklyn Nets?” Ryan nods, amused. He may not be interested in many team sports, but after 15 years in New York, even he has heard of the Nets. “I didn’t play for them for that long – had to retire after an injury during my second season there.”
“Oh, that sucks,” Ryan says, genuinely sympathetic. In his line of work, career-ending injuries are just as devastating. “I’m sorry.”
“It was a long time ago now,” Chad waves him off. “I was in a relationship at the time so I decided to stay in New York and finish college, and by the time I graduated, it was home, you know?”
“I know what that’s like,” Ryan smiles. His brain, unfortunately, has latched onto one half-statement in everything Chad said, and the words slip out before he can stop them: “You said you were in a relationship…so you and Taylor aren’t still…?”
Chad lets out a startled laugh. “Me and Taylor? We broke up before we even left for college. We’re still friends, but honestly, that’s all we ever should’ve been.”
“Oh,” Ryan says, and hopes he doesn’t sound as relieved as he feels. It’s stupid, for all he knows Chad could be married to a beautiful woman back in New York. Though he’s not wearing a ring, he checked. “Sorry, I’m really out of the loop. I just thought, with Troy and Gabriella actually married –”
“I know, it’s crazy,” Chad laughs. “Not everyone’s like them, though. Some people are single at 33.”
“Like me,” Ryan says, and Chad grins at him.
“And me.”
Which does not mean Ryan stands a chance, because as far as he knows, Chad is very straight, but he can’t help but feel a little thrill at the knowledge that they’re both single.
Once again, he’s saved from saying something embarrassing by Kelsi approaching them – this time with Taylor, the two of them laughing about something, shoulders and hands bumping with how close they’re walking. Ryan sees the flush on Kelsi’s cheeks and narrows his eyes at her.
She just narrows her eyes back and he resigns himself to asking for details later.
“So you two are really still best friends, huh?” Chad asks, looking between them with a grin, and Kelsi slings an arm around Ryan’s middle, who rests his elbow on her shoulder.
“Haven’t been able to get rid of him,” she says cheerfully, then yelps when Ryan digs his elbow in.
“She loves me, I promise,” he tells Chad and Taylor, who smile and shake their heads scarily simultaneously.
“And you two?” he asks, pointing between them. “How often do you see each other?”
“Not as often as we’d like,” Taylor says. “We try to make it work once every two months or so, but you know how it is.”
“Do you guys live together?” Chad wants to know.
“Most of the time,” Kelsi replies. “Ryan’s got an apartment that his parents pay for and that’s too good to pass up on.”
“To be fair, they’re paying the rent from when we started college, I didn’t want to ask them to raise my allowance,” Ryan interjects. “I think at this point they’ve forgotten they pay anything at all, and the rent has basically doubled, so it’s not like we’re living there for free. And they can afford to support us a little.”
“I lived with an ex for a while so I know what regular New York rents are like, and I’m not in a rush to get back to that,” Kelsi laughs. “Remember how when we broke up I continued living with her for like three months until we convinced your boyfriend at the time that it was easier to just give me my old room back than having me sleep on your couch every other night?”
“Should’ve known then he wasn’t the one,” Ryan says. “Anyway, yes, we’ve lived together for like 12 of the past 15 years, haven’t we, Kels?”
“We’re, like, a package deal at this point.”
“I think it’s great that you’ve stayed this close,” Taylor says with a smile. “Gabriella and I stay in touch, but our lives are so different at this point, and have been for so long, that it’s just not the same.”
“I mean, she has kids,” Ryan says. “How wild is that?”
“So wild,” Taylor agrees. “But I guess they’re happy, so…”
“Are you and Troy still close?” Kelsi asks Chad.
“Kind of,” Chad says. “We don’t talk as much as we used to, and there were a couple of years where we barely talked at all, but we’re good now. I’m actually Luna’s godfather – that’s their younger daughter.”
“You are?” Kelsi asks. “That’s so sweet. So do you see them often?”
“I try to visit as often as possible. It’s a good thing my parents still live in Albuquerque too, that way I can combine things. Like now, I’m actually staying the whole week, not just this weekend.”
“With your parents?” Ryan asks, and tries to imagine having to spend an entire week at his parents’. The house is big but he’d still be worried about running into his dad too often. Or even his mom, who still hasn’t stopped calling him “ducky”, which is kinda sweet, but well. Ryan is 33.
“Yeah, we get along well,” Chad says. “My little sisters are going to college here and still live at home too, it’s nice to see everyone.”
“So much harmony in that family,” Taylor says with a shake of her head and a teasing smile. “Right, Kelsi, come to the buffet with me?”
Kelsi does, looking a little too excited considering the buffet Ryan has just spent five minutes browsing, but he’s pretty sure it’s not about the food for her anyway. Clearly, he asked her about the wrong one of their high school classmates.
It leaves Ryan alone with Chad again, and he clears his throat, trying not to let his nerves show. It’s annoying that he still gets this nervous around Chad.
“So, did you keep in touch with anyone else?” he asks.
“Some of the guys from the team, I guess,” Chad says. “But not much. I deleted my Facebook years ago, and it’s hard to keep up with everyone without social media.”
“So you don’t have an Instagram?”
Chad shrugs. “I think I have one that my publicist made?”
“Your publicist?” Ryan raises his eyebrows and Chad shrugs again, bashfully.
“I had to hire one while I was playing actively,” he explains. “She doesn’t work for me anymore, but I guess I never got back into the habit of social media. It was better for my mental health not to see what people were saying about me and I just…figured it was best to stay away.”
“That’s surprisingly well-adjusted,” Ryan says, thinking of the doom scrolling he does, or the ill-advised searches for his own name on twitter. “You’re definitely right, stay away before you get addicted and can’t bring yourself to delete the apps anymore.”
Chad laughs. “Okay then, I’ll keep that in mind.”
Ryan wanders around for a while after that, saying hello to some people from drama club or his classes while Chad rejoins the group of his friends, but they keep ending up next to each other again and again.
It’s not even by design, they run into each other in different corners of the gym, or Kelsi drags Ryan back with her because she wants to catch up with Gabriella and then suddenly it’s late enough that half of the people have already left and the songs playing are the kind that make it clear that the night is drawing to a close.
Kelsi disappeared without saying goodbye to him over an hour ago, but that’s fine since they’re on the same flight home. Most of Chad’s friends seem to have left too, but he clearly doesn’t care because he’s been talking to Ryan and Martha for the past 20 minutes instead of getting ready to leave.
“Well, boys,” Martha says, clapping her hands. “It’s been great catching up with you, but I’ve got a lot to do before I can go home. Organizing a reunion is no joke.”
“Let us know if we can help you at all,” Ryan offers, and only realizes that he’s spoken for both of them when Martha smirks.
“Sure, thanks,” she says, and winks at him. Ryan wishes he’d kept that crush to himself a little better in high school.
“It’d be just rude if we left now,” Chad says once Martha has skipped away from them, and Ryan grins.
“Looks like we have to stay a little longer.”
“You got any early morning plans that affects?”
Ryan shakes his head. “I have no plans at all. Me and Kelsi are flying back home tomorrow evening but my parents aren’t even here, so I was just planning on lounging by the pool.”
“All alone?” Chad asks. “That’s just sad, man.”
“Well, you can come if you want,” Ryan offers without thinking, then immediately backpedals. “But I’m sure you’ve got plans–”
“I’m here all week,” Chad reminds him. “I can spare a few hours to keep you from loneliness. Plus, you’ve got a pool. It’s not exactly a hardship.”
Ryan absolutely wouldn’t die from loneliness after just a few hours, probably wouldn’t even feel lonely at all, but he’s also just a man. If a hot guy offers to hang out with him, he’s not gonna say no.
“Okay,” he says. “Sure, why not. We can order lunch and make use of the pool and wide open spaces before we go back to New York.”
“Sounds good to me.” Chad’s grin makes something prickle in Ryan’s stomach, and he’s almost glad when Martha takes him up on his offer and makes them carry chairs and tables for the remainder of the evening.
Ryan gets back to his parents’ house around 1am, feeling very different from what he expected to feel after this reunion. He thought he’d drop by, make awkward conversation with some people, then leave early as soon as Kelsi gave him the okay. Instead, he somehow ended up having a really nice night.
He falls asleep thinking about the way Chad’s laugh sounds.
His morning is lazy, he sleeps in and has a late breakfast, then Ryan starts packing up most of his shit and gets ready for Chad’s arrival. It’s past 12 already when he realizes that he never made sure Chad has his address, and they haven’t exchanged phone numbers either.
He and Sharpay weren’t popular enough in school to throw parties at their house – Sharpay liked to pretend they were, but people mostly feared her and barely paid attention to Ryan at all.
They sometimes threw small parties for the drama club, but he doesn’t think Chad’s ever been here. And he’s certainly never been to Chad’s, so he has no way to find him either. There’s no way he can ask Martha for his number, can he? Would that seem too desperate?
He’s still staring at his phone pondering exactly that when the doorbell rings. It startles him so bad he nearly drops his phone, and then runs to the front door.
Chad is standing there, looking at least as good as last night, and instead of “hello”, like a normal person, Ryan says, “I need your number.”
“Um,” Chad says on a laugh. “Yeah, sure, you can have it.”
“Sorry,” Ryan says, face flaming. “I just– I didn’t even tell you the address and I had no way to reach you–”
He finally steps aside to let Chad inside.
“I knew where you lived, or I would’ve asked,” Chad shrugs, looking around curiously. “You guys’ house was kinda famous in school.”
“Really?” Ryan frowns. “Well, here we are.”
“You should give me your number anyway,” Chad says, handing him his phone. “For New York. We should get dinner some time.”
“Yeah, totally,” Ryan says, sternly telling himself to calm down because it won’t be a date. It won’t.
He puts his number in Chad’s phone and hands it back. “Alright, come on out to the pool.”
They’ve got a big pool area behind the house, and Ryan’s set them up two lounging chairs next to each other, a table between them. He grabs the iced tea he made from the fridge and two glasses, then leads Chad outside.
Chad gives a low whistle. “Damn, this is nice, Evans. Thanks for inviting me.”
“Last chance for you to make sure you really wanna see me again in New York,” Ryan says, only half-joking.
Chad gives him a look that makes Ryan want to blush again. “I’m already sure of that.”
Ryan clears his throat. “Well, um. Do you wanna sit? Or you can go in the pool if you want, obviously.”
“Maybe later,” Chad says, and sits down on one of the loungers.
Ryan takes a deep breath and takes the other one.
Surprisingly, the awkwardness drops away almost immediately. Just like last night, it’s incredibly easy to talk to Chad, but today, they don’t even have to do the whole catching up anymore, they can just talk like people who have known each other for a long time.
It’s almost scary how deep their conversation can already go, except for how it just feels…good. Safe.
They order lunch and just keep talking through it all, until eventually, Chad sits up and says, “Okay, I think it’s time to make use of this pool now. You coming?”
“Oh, no, I’m okay,” Ryan says. “I’m staying at the edge.”
“Suit yourself,” Chad shrugs, and pulls his white t-shirt over his head.
Ryan tries very hard not to stare, but can’t keep himself from watching as Chad walks over to the pool and eases himself in slowly (good, so he knows it’s dangerous to jump in when you’ve been out in the heat).
Chad swims up and down the length of the pool a few times, and eventually, Ryan takes off his own shirt and sits down at the edge of the pool, feet dangling in the water.
Chad comes to a stop near him, treading water and grinning up at him. “Sure you don’t wanna come in? It’s nice.”
“I’m good here,” Ryan says. And, because he can’t help himself, he kicks up just enough water that a few drops hit Chad in the face.
He splutters theatrically and splashes back.
The cold water on his thighs makes Ryan yelp, and he warns him, “Oh, you’re on.”
Chad ducks underwater before Ryan can splash him, and he reappears even closer, with a shit eating grin. “No, you’re on.”
Like little kids, they keep splashing each other until even Ryan is soaked, without ever having gone in the pool.
“Why’d you want to stay outside again?” Chad teases and Ryan laughs, jumping into the water after him.
Chad laughs too and dives out of the way, but he lets Ryan catch him on the next try. He lets himself be dunked, too, and shakes his wet hair in Ryan’s face when he comes back up.
They’re very close, Ryan’s hands still on Chad’s shoulders, and for one, impossibly long second, Ryan lets himself imagine leaning in.
Instead, he ducks underwater and swims away, to safety. It ends their water fight, but Chad doesn’t seem to have noticed anything weird.
He stays in the pool for a little while longer while Ryan returns to the edge, and eventually, they both settle down in the lounge chairs again, letting the rest of the afternoon drift by with quiet conversation until Ryan has to get ready for his flight home.
“Text me when you land,” Chad says by the door. “And after that, too, if you want.”
“I will,” Ryan promises with a grin. “You’re not getting rid of me easily anymore, Danforth.”
“Good,” Chad says, again with that sincerity that makes Ryan feel hot all over, and pulls him into a hug.
It’s different from the one at the reunion yesterday. That one was quick and a friendly way to say hello. This one – is long and tight, Chad’s arms around him and their entire bodies so close their fucking knees touch. Ryan’s nose brushes against the shell of Chad’s ear and he violently has to suppress a full body shudder.
“See you in New York,” Chad says when he pulls back, and Ryan nods, feeling shaky.
“See you there.”
“Have a safe flight,” Chad adds, and his hand is somehow still on Ryan’s shoulder.
Ryan forces out a “thank you,” and with one last squeeze of his shoulder and a devastating smile, Chad walks out the door.
Ryan stands there for another minute, trying to get his shit together. There’s no way Chad knows what he’s doing to him, but fuck, that guy should come with a warning.
Kelsi’s parents take them to the airport – Ryan has a complicated relationship with them, because they’re always nice and do stuff like picking them up from and taking them to the airport. But while they never say anything homophobic, they also always go out of their way to not mention his and Kelsi’s sexualities. It’s fine for him, he doesn’t need them to ask him if he has a boyfriend or whatever, but he resents them for not openly supporting his best friend.
She says she’s used to it, but he can tell that it hurts her, and that hurts him. It always makes these car rides a little bit awkward, because he’s pretty sure they can feel his resentment.
At the airport, both Nielsens hug Kelsi goodbye and politely nod at Ryan, who, equally politely, thanks them for the ride.
Kelsi and Ryan make it through security quickly, and get to their gate with a little spare time until boarding. They find two seats on the uncomfortable airport chairs, and Kelsi yawns.
“So,” she says, throwing him a smug grin, “was it worth coming to the reunion?”
Ryan rolls his eyes. “I guess it wasn’t as bad as I expected it to be.”
“You’re welcome,” she says. “You know, I could say I told you so.”
“You just did,” Ryan complains. “But okay, fine, it was really nice seeing Martha again.”
“Martha, huh?” she laughs, and Ryan crosses his arms and raises his eyebrows challengingly.
“Yes, Martha. We were friends in high school.”
She hums. “I’m not questioning that.”
Ryan knows what she’s getting at, obviously, he just likes being difficult sometimes. And it’s not like she doesn’t clearly have something to tell him, too.
They bicker back and forth until boarding, and then settle on the plane during the emergency instructions and take-off, but eventually, Ryan is ready to cut the crap.
“So, you left awfully early last night, considering you’re the one out of the two of us who actually kept in touch with some people,” he says once they’re safely in the air, waggling his eyebrows at his best friend.
Kelsi blushes a pleased light pink. “Maybe I was just tired.”
“Uh huh. And was Taylor McKessie tired at the same time?”
Kelsi bites her lip, then grins. “Okay, fine. Why are you asking this if you already know?”
“Because I want to hear it from you!” he says. “Did you actually hook up?”
Kelsi shushes him but nods, obviously very pleased with herself.
“Oh my god,” Ryan whispers. “I didn’t even know you liked her! When did this happen? How? And what? Since when are you so secretive?”
“We’ve been texting for a few weeks, but we wanted to see if it felt the same way in person first,” Kelsi shrugs, still smiling. She looks so happy it makes Ryan’s heart ache. “And it does, so. We’re giving it a go.”
“Oh my god,” Ryan says again, grabbing her hand and squeezing. “I’m so happy for you!”
“What about you, though?” Kelsi asks. “Don’t think I didn’t notice the way you were looking at Chad. I thought you said that crush was in the past!”
“I thought it was! But have you seen him? That man has aged well .” He sighs dreamily and Kelsi laughs.
“I mean, I’m a raging homosexual, but even I can see that,” she says. “You talked a lot, though.”
“We hung out today, too,” Ryan admits, and several heads turn their way when Kelsi squeals, “What?! Tell me everything!”
So he tells her about inviting Chad over, the way they just talked by the pool for hours, even the water fight.
He doesn’t mention that they’ve got plans to see each other in New York, that they’re going out for dinner, because it doesn’t mean anything. They’re two old friends, catching up.
Ryan can totally get over his stupid high school crush in order to be Chad’s friend.
And if a tiny part of him thinks what if every time their eyes catch and Chad doesn’t look away, he’s certainly not gonna tell her that. She’d either give him a look full of pity or would tease him relentlessly, and he’s not looking for either of that right now.
~~~
For the entire week that Chad stays in Albuquerque after Ryan has gone back to New York, they keep texting. Sometimes, they even talk on the phone or over FaceTime, when Ryan gets so excited to show him something he’s seeing or doing. It’s really fucking cute.
They talk about nothing and everything – Chad tells Ryan about his job, fine but kind of boring, and his real passion, the high school basketball team he coaches. He learns more about Ryan’s day-to-day as a choreographer. They talk about food and vacations, family and friends, hobbies and things they hate, the weather, traffic, politics, movies, sports, anything that comes up.
Back in high school, they didn’t talk much. First, it was because Chad was a jock and Ryan was in drama club, so their paths didn’t cross outside of a class or two. And then, after the summer at Lava Springs, Chad tried to keep his distance, because Ryan was awakening things in him he didn’t want awakened.
It didn’t work, and thankfully, Chad has learned to accept and embrace his bisexuality since then, but it did mean that they never really got to just talk.
But it’s easy with Ryan now – Chad doesn’t have to search for a topic, doesn’t second-guess what he’s saying, and even if there are silences while they’re on the phone, it’s never awkward.
Chad didn’t expect to catch feelings for a high school crush at their 15-year-reunion, and yet here they are. It’s only been a week, but Chad hasn’t felt this excited about someone in ages.
He flies back to New York on Sunday evening, after countless hugs from his family, and texts Ryan as soon as he takes his phone off flight mode.
Ryan texts back within minutes, before Chad has even gotten off the plane.
The restaurant Ryan has sent him is a cozy-looking tapas place in Brooklyn, which works well for Chad. Ryan reacts to his last message with a heart, and Chad goes home with a spring in his step.
Maybe it’s dumb to feel like this after such a short time, but the way he can talk to Ryan is so different from other people he’s been into before, and so is the way the thought of him alone makes his stomach flutter. He’d be embarrassed about it if he didn’t like it this much.
Taylor laughs at him over FaceTime when he calls her in a panic after work on Wednesday, with only a few minutes left to pick an outfit if he wants to do anything about his hair.
“Send me the link to the restaurant again,” she demands, and he does, even though it can’t be that far up their text chain. She probably just doesn’t wanna scroll past all his teasing about Kelsi.
She’s quiet for a few seconds and then says decisively, “Wear those jeans that make your thighs and ass look good, you know the ones.” Chad hates it a little bit that he does know. “But pair them with a button-down shirt, to show that you’ve made an effort. Not too dressy, but, you know. Classy. And now hurry, do not be late to this date.”
“I won’t,” he says, all too aware of how important this is. “Thanks, T.”
“Anytime, and call me tomorrow to tell me how it went!”
Chad promises and hangs up to get ready as quickly as possible, picking a blue shirt with a classy pattern on it and fussing with his hair in front of the mirror until it’s time to go.
He triple checks that he’s put on both deodorant and his aftershave before he actually leaves, but then he finally locks the door of his brownstone behind himself.
Twelve years ago, with no idea that he only had a few months left to play basketball professionally, he bought this house, feeling rich and unstoppable, on top of the world. He’d just paid off his parents’ loan and started college funds for his sisters the year before, but the financing seemed easy to him.
He didn’t really buy anything else for himself, not a fan of flashy cars or fancy vacations, so why not spend his money on a house he felt at home in rather than the cold luxury apartments some of his teammates preferred?
The only reason he was able to keep it was that the team paid for the rest of his college education and he found a job before his savings completely dried up. He still doesn’t regret it, thinks that the house is at least half the reason why he considers Brooklyn home, and he wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Sure, he misses his family, and he’d like to see his goddaughter (and the rest of her family) more than he does, but his life is here. He’s got a job, his high school team, and friends that have been with him through highs and lows.
And now, if he’s lucky, maybe he’ll have Ryan, too.
Chad gets to the restaurant a few minutes early. Ryan isn’t there yet, so he takes a minute to look around, finding the restaurant just as cozy as it seemed on Google Maps. The walls are painted a warm yellow, the chairs are mismatched, music is playing on low, and people are talking and laughing.
He gets led to the table Ryan booked for them and sits down nervously, straightening out his shirt and running a hand over his hair, careful not to mess it up.
When Ryan does show up at the door of the restaurant, he jumps to his feet before Ryan spots him. He’s less dressed up than for the reunion, in slacks and a t-shirt, but he looks as effortlessly good as he always seems to.
He smiles when the waitress points him towards their table and then smiles wider when he sees Chad standing there.
Chad goes in for a kiss on the cheek but misses when Ryan pulls him into a short hug instead.
“Hey,” he says when he pulls back, and sits down too quickly for Chad to pull his chair out.
Not that he thinks that’s a thing he needs to do on a date, but he was gonna go the chivalrous route anyway. Woo Ryan a little, maybe.
“How was your day?” he asks, sitting down too.
“It was good,” Ryan says. ”Busy, but I like that. How was yours?”
“Nothing special, until now.” Ryan’s face does something weird, almost like a grimace, and Chad falters. Did he get it all wrong, and Ryan’s not as into him as he is into Ryan? But why would he agree to go on a date, then? He clears his throat. “Um, this is a nice place.”
Ryan’s face brightens. “I know, right? I take my other friends here all the time.”
Other friends, like that’s all Chad is. He feels his own face fall, but before he can make up his mind about what to say (did he misread the situation this badly?), they’re interrupted by a waitress asking for their orders.
Ryan orders a drink and Chad just asks for the same. He hasn’t even really looked at the menu yet.
“I’ll come back in a few minutes then,” she tells them cheerfully, “once you’ve decided what you’d like to eat.”
“I usually just order a bunch to share with my friends,” Ryan starts, then looks up at Chad and frowns. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I–” Chad sighs, and decides to pull himself together. “No. Listen, Ryan, I think I got some things really wrong here. Is this a date?”
“What?” Ryan asks, eyes wide. “No! I’d never–”
“Okay,” Chad interrupts him. He really doesn’t need to hear how completely undesirable he is for Ryan, and his shock at the idea stings. “I guess then I just misread the situation.”
“I’m sorry,” Ryan says, and his voice sounds much less shocked now, almost pleading. “I promise I’m fine with just being friends, I didn’t mean to– I actually tried really hard to make this feel like a date as little as possible.”
“You could’ve just said you don’t want to date me,” Chad says, but he’s getting more and more confused. Why would Ryan promise that he’s fine with them just being friends? The problem is that Chad isn’t fine with it.
Ryan stares at him. “What?”
“What?” Chad asks back. He has no idea what’s going on, except for how they’re clearly getting their wires crossed. “If you didn’t want to go on a date, you could’ve just said so when I asked you.”
“When did you ask that?” Ryan asks, and his voice has a hysterical touch all of a sudden. “And why?! You’re straight!”
“Um,” Chad makes, and slowly, slowly, an explanation forms in his mind. “I’m really, really not. I’m bisexual. But I guess I never said that, did I?” Ryan shakes his head, gaping at him. “So that explains why you didn’t get that I was asking you on a date, right? Ryan, I’ve been flirting with you since the reunion.”
“Oh my god,” Ryan says. “Are you fucking kidding me? I thought I was going crazy with all my wishful thinking.”
Chad can feel the corners of his mouth lifting in a smile. “So you were wishing for me to be flirting with you?”
“Yeah, Chad,” Ryan says emphatically. “I had a huge crush on you in high school, and getting to know you again now has just been…so good, you know?”
“I know,” Chad agrees. This conversation has taken so many turns he’s not 100% sure anymore where up is. “I mean, I didn’t really want it to be a crush back then, but this time around, I just feel like we click.”
“Same.” Ryan smiles, extending a hand across the table. “So can we just start over and agree this is a date?”
Chad smiles back and puts his hand in Ryan’s. “Yeah, we can.”
“Are you ready to order?” their waitress asks, placing their drinks in front of them.
Chad looks at the menu in front of him he still hasn’t even opened, and then at Ryan’s grin.
“Do you trust me?”
He nods and Ryan orders a bunch of things that Chad doesn’t really hear, too busy looking at him. Somehow, sitting here with his hand in Ryan’s, this feels even better than he was hoping it would.
“Where were we?” Ryan asks as soon as they’re alone again, and squeezes his hand. “Making sure we both know this is a date.”
“And you were telling me about this ‘huge crush’ you had on me in high school,” Chad teases.
Ryan laughs. “Oh, shut up. I’m pretty sure you said I wasn’t the only one.”
“I tried keeping my distance,” Chad admits. “I was kinda scared by the things you made me feel. And I was still dating Taylor, so I felt, like, super guilty about it all. Of course then we broke up right after graduation, and it was actually her coming out to me as a lesbian that made me finally start taking these feelings seriously. But yeah – that summer at Lava Springs definitely made me see you differently.”
“Me, too,” Ryan says. “I thought you were cute before that – I spent way too much time in that mascot suit to not notice you – but I thought, well, you were just a hot jock, to be honest. But then we played baseball together and got talking, and that was kind of it for me.”
“No, yeah,” Chad agrees. “It was the same for me. You were so different from what I thought you’d be, and that fascinated me. And then I saw you at the reunion, and it all came rushing back. That’s why I wanted to talk to you at first, to see if that, um, for lack of a better word: if that spark was still there.”
“And it was?” Ryan asks, as if Chad isn’t currently still holding his hand.
“It is.”
“For me too,” Ryan says with a smile. “I still kind of can’t believe how easy it is to talk to you. I’ve told you things in the past week that I haven’t told people I’ve been friends with for years.”
He looks pleased, a light blush on his face, and still hasn’t pulled his hand away. Chad wants to keep looking at him forever.
“I’m really glad we’re on the same page now,” he murmurs. “For a minute there I thought–”
“Yeah. Honestly, I still can’t really believe it, I’ve spent the past 10 days telling myself you only wanted to be friends.”
“I promise you, I don’t.”
The look Ryan gives him in response is so intense Chad wants to crawl across the table and get his mouth on him immediately. If this is what he’s been holding back, Chad is in for a ride.
Their food arriving keeps him from doing something stupid and impulsive (good – Ryan deserves the kind of first kiss that doesn’t happen over a table in a busy restaurant), but it also forces them to finally let go of each other.
The tapas Ryan ordered for them are delicious and they share everything, except for the olives that Chad happily lets Ryan have on his own.
Their conversation returns to normal, the same easy back and forth they’ve had since the reunion, except now, when Chad nudges Ryan’s knee with his own, Ryan doesn’t move away. He keeps their legs pressed together throughout the whole dinner, including dessert. Afterwards, Ryan insists on paying for both of them. Chad doesn’t put up a fight, but he brings it up outside of the restaurant anyway when they stop right outside the door.
“I was gonna do that,” he says, pointing over his shoulder. “I had a whole plan to sweep you off your feet.”
“And then I ruined the entire plan,” Ryan says with a small smile. “But you don’t have to worry – consider me swept. And you can pay next time.”
“Next time?” Chad asks, full of hope. “So I didn’t ruin my chances?”
“The only one who got close to ruining anything was me.” Ryan winces. “I really like you, Chad. I’m sorry I assumed you were straight instead of just asking.”
“You don't need to apologize,” Chad says softly, reaching for Ryan’s hand. Ryan squeezes his fingers and smiles. “I should’ve made things clearer, too. Let’s just…from now on, we’ll really talk about things, okay?”
“Open communication,” Ryan nods. “I like that.”
“And I like you,” Chad says, “in case that wasn’t clear.”
Ryan pulls him closer by the hand, his other hand settling on Chad’s waist. “Took me a while to get it, but I’m there now. You know what else I’d like?” He steps even closer, and Chad can’t help the way his eyes drop to Ryan’s mouth, watching his lips curl up in a smile. He makes a vaguely inquiring sound, and Ryan’s smile widens. “For you to kiss me.”
Chad looks back up into his blue eyes and lifts a hand to cup his jaw gently. Ryan licks his lips, and Chad lets go of his hand to wrap an arm around his middle.
“Yeah?” he murmurs, leaning in until his nose brushes Ryan’s. “I’d like that, too.”
And when he finally kisses Ryan, he’s kissing his high school crush – but mostly, he’s kissing the amazing man he’s gotten to know over the past 10 days.
Ryan holds him tighter, and Chad thinks, distantly, that he already can’t wait for their 20-year-reunion. He knows they’ll be going there together.