“Not really.”
“Coffee?”
“Yeah.”
As Sage made their coffee, Bryce watched him. Again, he was struck by the fact that he’d never realized his attraction to Sage or his growing emotions. Now that things had changed between them, Bryce knew he’d been falling for Sage for a long time.
“You okay?” Sage asked.
“I am now,” Bryce said. “I was before. I’m more now.”
Sage’s mouth tugged. He got two mugs down and set them side by side. “Call your mom,” he said. “I’ll finish making the coffee.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. Do it now. You’ll stare at the phone if you don’t.”
Bryce nodded and picked it up. He walked into his room and sat on the edge of the bed. He hit the call icon. She picked up on the second ring. “Hey, honey.”
“Hey.”
“You sound good. How’s your week?”
“Busy. Lab didn’t kill me.”
“Good. Are you eating real food?”
“Sometimes.” He took a breath. “I need to tell you something about Sage.”
She was quiet for a beat. “Okay.”
“We’re together,” he said. “It’s new.”
His mom paused before asking, “Are you happy?”
“Yeah.”
“Good,” she said, and he could hear her smile. “Do you want me to tell your dad, or will you?”
“I will tomorrow.”
“He’ll be fine.” There was a small pause, then, “Are you two being careful?”
“We are. We talk about what’s happening.”
“Good. I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“Put Sage on sometime. There’s no rush.”
“I will.”
They talked about class schedules for a few more minutes. She told him about the neighbor’s new dog. He told her about Dan’s playlist and Tara’s trivia rules. She laughed in the right places. He didn’t rush off the call, enjoying catching up with what had been happening at home.
When he walked back out, Sage was on the couch with two mugs on the table and the throw over his legs. “How was it?” Sage asked when Bryce sat down next to him.
“Good,” Bryce said. “She’s fine. I’ll call my dad tomorrow.”
