“I was an asshole that day,” I admit. “I was just…working through some shit. Not that that’s an excuse.”
Ryan and Marty exchange a look, and Ryan’s shoulders relax, like my words reassure him he doesn’t have to guard his boyfriend like a near-seven-foot guard dog.
“Maybe we can put it behind us?” I ask.
“Well,” Ryan says, “I can’t say I’ve always acted the best in emotional situations, and in retrospect, I do see that the fire wasn’t anyone’s fault. It was an accident. And really, if it hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have this guy, so yeah, I’m game to put it in the past. Mart?”
Marty winces. “You’re good for right now, but you so much as make our boy cry, and you’re a dead man.” Like when Damien stepped up to defend Dax, there’s something comforting about knowing Dax has these guys in his corner.
“Fuck…” I drag out. “I’m starting to think the Alpha Theta Mus might be cool after all.”
Ryan and Marty look surprised.
“Now everyone kiss and make up,” Dax teases, but I go along with it, planting one on him.
“That’s not what I meant and you know it.”
“I think he’s got a good idea,” Ryan says, doing the same with Marty, which gets us all laughing.
“What are you fratholes doing standing around?” Aiden calls over. “We’re supposed to be heading to afters. Get your asses together.”
“I think someone might be aiming for prez next year,” I observe.
“Did someone say prez?” a voice comes from nearby—Ty Lancaster approaching with Lance Fehn.
“That would be me, fuckers!” Leo calls out.
“They voted me in first,” Lance reminds him.
“Jesus, am I surrounded by the enemy?” I joke.
“Better get used to it,” Dax warns before Lance rushes him for a hug. “Come here, you sexy fuck.”
Ty follows closely after. “All tied up. Feel like this is how you probably like it anyway.” He turns to his boyfriend. “What do you say we dunk him in one of those kiddie pools filled with Jell-O?”
“What? No!” Dax shouts, though the giant-ass grin across his face says yes.
“Only if we can get his boyfriend too,” Ryan says, shooting me a playful look.
I can tell what he’s doing. This is a weird-ass frat truce that I can either accept or deny.
“Okay, give it to me,” I say since I do kind of deserve it after the hell I gave them last year.
Dax and I wind up covered in Jell-O before we head over to the afters, where we get to drinking, catching up with old friends, and yes, I even dance with Dax.
“Where’s Jaxon?” Dax asks Keegan, who nods toward a corner of the room, and I see his friend making out with a guy against the wall.
“Oh…” Tatum says.
When my attention returns to Keegan, I notice the tension in his jaw, like he wants to go over there and intervene. The way I might look if I saw some guy putting the moves on Dax, which is weird since from what I know, Keegan’s straight. Judging by his reaction…maybe not as much as I thought.
“That the guy Jaxon’s dating?” Dax asks. “I haven’t met him yet.”
“I didn’t know he was with someone,” Tatum says.
“Yeah…” Keegan drags out, sounding displeased.
“That cool?” I probe.
