The once comfortable silence is now weirdly tense as fuck.
My brother clears his throat after a very,very, long and awkward pause. “Did you see?—”
“Nope,” I interrupt, still fussing over breakfast. Luckily, it’s the truth. I adore Blair, but seeing his most intimate parts is most definitely not a dream of mine.
It’s clear as day that they’re close on some level, but I also know that he’s emotionally scarred and traumatized after Dani shattered his heart into a million pieces. I’m not sure how much of it he was able to piece back together, or what it may look like since he had to do it on his own for so long.
I’m curious, so I do the most natural thing I can think of.
Bust out the annoying questions.
“So,” I start as I plate the eggs, moving on to the pancake batter. Asher groans, and I chuckle. “You and B, huh?” I know I’m stating the obvious.
I look at Asher as he runs a hand through his messy, blonde hair. He eyes me, looking a little hot under the collar before he nods. I smile at that.
“When did it become more?Howdid it become more?”
“First of all, there is no ignoring Blair once he decides you’re on his radar. He’s an absolute gremlin, all wild and chaotic energy majority of the time, but he’s observant and so fucking smart.”
I nod in agreement, smiling at the memories of how fast he latched onto me once he joined the band. Not in the same way he adhered himself to Asher, obviously, but he’s become what he calls mylavenderperson. A platonic soulmate of sorts. His kinship felt different than mere friendship. In no time flat, Blair had claimed the shared title of family and best friend. God, did he love to tease Creed about it, too.
Asher stands, rubbing at the back of his neck before stuffing his hands into the pockets of his sweats. He turns his gaze towards the rippling water of the pool, reverence in his eyes.
“For a very long time, I felt anger before I felt nothing at all. Neither men nor women held any appeal to me. I felt nothing but revulsion over any form of intimacy or companionship, even if only offered.”
Sadness seeps into my heart for my brother. The life I led wasn’t easy. It fucking sucked most days, and on the especially horrible ones, I hated my brother. But I never stopped to consider that he himself might have been battling his own fights. His own demons.
Pulling his phone from his pocket, he lights up the screen to reveal the background to me. It’s a black and white photo of Blair sleeping peacefully on his stomach.
“Blair is…he’s eternally patient, especially with me. I tried to push him away at first, keeping him at arms length because I’m just too fucked up and broken. The last thing I want to do is hurt him. But as you’d guess, he’s extremely persistent.”
“Ain’t that the truth.” I laugh as I flip the first set of pancakes and practically salivate over their sweet smell. I steal some bacon from the mountain of it on the plate to keep myself quiet, letting Asher tell me his story.
“At first, he was just there. Always hanging around, just existing within my orbit. Letting himself just…be near me withno expectations. Then, he told me I could be free with him. No strings attached.”
Asher glances at me from the corner of his eye, and we both blush at the same time. He tried to choose his words carefully with that confession, but I’m not naive. I hide my grimace behind a cough because I do not need, norwantto know about his and Blair’s freeuse kink.
“After a while, I surprised even myself with how much I didn’t like how casual things were between us. Because to me, having freedom blurred the line too much into sharing the person you care about with someone else.”
I shoot him a glare, and his eyes widen. Holding his hands up in surrender, he remedies his words. “Not like what you three have. Your relationship was consensual from the start.” He swipes a hand down his face before glancing at the house. “It scared me that what happened with Dani would happen with Blair, but this time, it would be because I pushed him into it. I was terrified, but I knew nothing would change unless I talked to him about it.”
It’s clear where the conversation led to, given how they’re inseparable, but I ask anyway. “And? What did he say?”
Ash laughs, his eyes crinkling at the corners with how wide his smile is. He scoffs, mocking Blair’s voice. “Took you long enough.”
“I donotsound like that,” Blair whines as he emerges from the back door carrying a tray of breakfast fixins. He sets them on the table, then slinks over to Asher, giving him a playful nip on his jaw before kissing his cheek. Before Ash can pin him down, he walks over to me, drops a kiss to my messy bun, and throws his arm around my shoulder as I plate the last of the pancakes. He looks at Asher with a playful sort of longing. “But it’s true. Your brother is endgame material, I just had to let him get thereon his own.” He blows him a kiss. “You’re stuck with me now, baby.”
The joy and comfort I see on Asher’s face is enough to make my heart threaten to burst in my chest. It’s not just Blair that shares the sentiment. My brother is absolutely a goner for B. Now I’m making silent bets on who’s gonna drop to one knee and propose first, because my imaginary money is on Blair.
Riley and Creed exit the house next, both with huge grins on their faces. Their laughter and the growing sounds of continued conversations from indoors signals the end of mine and Asher’s conversation.
He sidles up next to me to help grab the remaining plates of food. Dropping a kiss to the top of my head, he murmurs, “Love you, Bug.”
I bump his arm with my shoulder since I can’t hug him with my hands full.
“Love you, too, Ash.”
Riley laughs again and I swing my attention over to him. My heart fucking takes off like a hummingbird’s when I see that he’s carrying a stack of ceramic plates with very little tremor in his grip. They clink together, but the look of pride on his face feels like a massive victory. On the back of each hand are these thick, weighted gloves that loop over the tops of his fingers, leaving his palms exposed.
